Saw the recent thread on railroad bridges and then ran across this item on the Ahead of the Torch website. Not a railroad bridge per se, but an overpass built in the early 1830's which MIGHT be the first bridge built in the U.S.A. over a railroad. The railroad was the Camden & Amboy and it's most likely that the John Bull (now at the Smithsonian) ran under it in regular service! The New Jersey D.O.T. wants to tear it down but preservationists say that instead, it should be restored. The structure is the Farnsworth Avenue Stone Arch Carriage Bridge and Tunnel in Bordentown, NJ. Even if not the first overpass constructed, it is surely one of the first.
The United States likes to tear down rather than save, so this one might go the way of so many other pieces of history.
Les
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Farnsworth Ave stone arch bridge and tunnel in New Jersey.png [ 345.99 KiB | Viewed 3609 times ] |