- Norwottuck Rail Trail Bridge
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Norwottuck Rail Trail Bridge 
Carries Norwottuck Rail Trail Crosses Connecticut River Locale Northampton, Massachusetts to Hadley, Massachusetts Maintained by MassHighway Design steel lattice truss bridge[1] Total length approximately 1,492 feet (454.76 m) Longest span approximately 200 feet (61 m) Opened 1887, 1992 Coordinates 42°20′14″N 72°37′07″W / 42.33722°N 72.61861°WCoordinates: 42°20′14″N 72°37′07″W / 42.33722°N 72.61861°W 
The Norwottuck Rail Trail Bridge (also known as the Northampton Lattice Truss Bridge) is a former crossing of Boston and Maine Railroad over the Connecticut River in western Massachusetts, connecting the towns of Northampton and Hadley, currently used for bicycle and foot traffic.
Contents
History and construction of the bridge
The Norwottuck Rail Trail Bridge is an eight-span steel lattice truss bridge. It crosses Elwell Island in the middle of the river, providing no access to the island in an attempt to keep the island otherwise untouched. Riding over the bridge shows eight spans, with two of them over Elwell Island. It was built by the R. F. Hawkins Ironworks Company.[2]
To survive the 1936 flood, railroad cars loaded with scrap metal were placed on the bridge to weigh it down.[3]
The bridge was redesigned by Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. of Watertown, rebuilt by MassHighway, and opened in 1992 to bicycle and foot traffic as part of the Norwottuck Rail Trail.
See also
External links
- Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.
- Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
- The Norwottuck Rail Trail Online
- Memorial Hall
References
- ^ Northampton Lattice Truss Bridge at Structurae
- ^ Toomey, Daniel P. (1892). Massachusetts of Today: A Memorial of the State Historical and Biographical Issued for the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago. Columbia. p. 347.Google books
- ^ Hadley Online
- Jackson, Donald C. (1988). Great American Bridges and Dams. Wiley. pp. 95–96. ISBN 0-471-14385-5.
Crossings of the Connecticut River Upstream
Sunderland Bridge
Norwottuck Rail Trail Bridge Downstream
Calvin Coolidge Bridge
Categories:- Truss bridges
- Bridges over the Connecticut River
- Buildings and structures in Northampton, Massachusetts
- Bridges completed in 1887
- Rail trail bridges in the United States
- Bridges in Hampshire County, Massachusetts
- Railroad bridges in Massachusetts
- Pedestrian bridges in Massachusetts
- United States railway bridge stubs
- Massachusetts building and structure stubs
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