Taft Bridge

Last updated
Taft Bridge
Coordinates 38°55′18″N77°03′01″W / 38.921652°N 77.050371°W / 38.921652; -77.050371
Characteristics
Total length901 feet (275 m)
William Howard Taft Bridge
Washington DC Taft Bridge.jpg
Location map Washington DC Cleveland Park to Southwest Waterfront.png
Red pog.svg
Location Connecticut Avenue, NW over Rock Creek
Washington, D.C.
Coordinates 38°55′14″N77°2′59″W / 38.92056°N 77.04972°W / 38.92056; -77.04972
Built1906
Architect Edward Pearce Casey
Engineer George S. Morison
Architectural style Classical Revival
NRHP reference No. 03000584 [1]
Added to NRHPJuly 3, 2003 [2]
Location
Taft Bridge

The Taft Bridge (also known as the Connecticut Avenue Bridge or William Howard Taft Bridge) is a historic bridge located in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. It carries Connecticut Avenue over the Rock Creek gorge, including Rock Creek and the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, connecting the neighborhoods of Woodley Park and Kalorama. It is named after former United States president and Supreme Court Chief Justice William Howard Taft, and sits to the southwest of the Duke Ellington Bridge. [2] [3]

Contents

Four statues of lions by sculptor Roland Hinton Perry, known as the Perry Lions, are placed in pairs at both ends of the bridge. On July 3, 2003, the Taft Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places. [1]

History

The Classical Revival bridge was built from 1897 to 1907. It was designed by engineer George S. Morison and architect Edward Pearce Casey. [2] [3] Construction was overseen by U.S. Army engineer Henry C. Newcomer. [4] It is an arch bridge with unreinforced concrete arches and a reinforced concrete deck. The total length of the bridge is 274.5 meters (901 ft). It has been called an "engineering tour de force" and the largest unreinforced concrete structure in the world. [5] In 1931, the bridge was renamed in honor of U.S. President William Howard Taft, who frequently walked the bridge while Chief Justice of the United States. [6]

During early planning for the Washington Metro in the 1960s, the Red Line was slated to run across the bridge to connect Dupont Circle and Woodley Park. Instead, the metro was built underground. [7]

Perry Lions

One of the Perry Lions, by Roland Hinton Perry, at the Northern end of the bridge Taft Bridge Lion.jpg
One of the Perry Lions, by Roland Hinton Perry, at the Northern end of the bridge

The bridge is "guarded" by four large male lions, two on each end of the bridge (each about 7 ft. x 6 ft. 6 in. x 13 ft.). Two of the lions rest on all fours with their heads tilted upwards and mouths slightly open while the other pair lie with their eyes closed, apparently sleeping. They were originally designed and sculpted by Roland Hinton Perry in 1906 out of cast concrete (the bridge as a whole is one of the first cast concrete bridges in the country) and were installed in 1907.

In 1964 the lions were restored and weatherproofed by Washington-based sculptor Renato Luccetti, although this restoration proved to be less than entirely successful. When a major rehabilitation of the bridge began in 1993, the lions, which were in very bad condition, were removed for further restoration. They are currently stored in the Air Rights Tunnel on southbound I-395. The sculptures were finally found to be beyond restoring. [8] [9]

The United States Commission of Fine Arts worked with the city in the late 1990s to oversee the production of the replacement lions that now sit on the bridge. The sculptor Reinaldo Lopez-Carrizo of Professional Restoration produced molds based on the existing sculptures and photographs, and used them to cast new concrete lion sculptures that were installed on the bridge in July and August 2000. [10] The same molds were used to cast bronze lions installed at the main pedestrian entrance to the National Zoo farther north on Connecticut Avenue in 2002. [11] The white lion in the lobby of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts is a quarter-size replica from that effort. [12]

Bairstow Eagle Lampposts

Twenty-four lampposts are equally spaced along both sides of the Taft Bridge. Created by sculptor Ernest Bairstow in 1906, the lampposts are composed of concrete bases (about 5 feet high, 8 inches deep and four feet wide) with painted iron lampposts (about 17 feet high and 4 wide) set in them. The pedestals are decorated with garland and a fluted column featuring acanthus leaves at the top and bottom. Above the leaves is a horizontal bracket with two globes hanging from each side of the column. Each lamppost is topped with a painted iron eagle with its wings spread. [13]

A replica of the Bairstow eagles is seen in a World War I monument in Middletown, Delaware. [14]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway</span> Parkway in Washington D.C.

The Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, informally called the Rock Creek Parkway, is a parkway maintained by the National Park Service as part of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. It runs next to the Potomac River and Rock Creek in a generally north–south direction, carrying four lanes of traffic from the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington Memorial Bridge north to a junction with Beach Drive near Connecticut Avenue at Calvert Street, N.W., just south of the National Zoological Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Earle Fraser (sculptor)</span> American sculptor (1876-1953)

James Earle Fraser was an American sculptor during the first half of the 20th century. His work is integral to many of Washington, D.C.'s most iconic structures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connecticut Avenue</span> Thoroughfare in Washington, D.C., and Maryland

Connecticut Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., and suburban Montgomery County, Maryland. It is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House, and the segment south of Florida Avenue was one of the original streets in Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant's plan for Washington. A five-mile segment north of Rock Creek was built in the 1890s by a real-estate developer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dumbarton Bridge (Washington, D.C.)</span> United States historic place

The Dumbarton Bridge, also known as the Q Street Bridge and the Buffalo Bridge, is a historic masonry arch bridge in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ulysses S. Grant Memorial</span> US historic place in Washington, D.C.

The Ulysses S. Grant Memorial is a presidential memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring American Civil War general and 18th president of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant. It sits at the base of Capitol Hill, below the west front of the United States Capitol. Its central sculpture of Grant on horseback faces west, overlooking the Capitol Reflecting Pool and facing toward the Lincoln Memorial, which honors Grant's wartime president, Abraham Lincoln. Grant's statue is raised on a pedestal decorated with bronze reliefs of the infantry; flanking pedestals hold statues of protective lions and bronze representations of the Union cavalry and artillery. The whole is connected with marble covered platforms, balustrades, and stairs. The Grant and Lincoln memorials define the eastern and western ends, respectively, of the National Mall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duke Ellington Bridge</span> Bridge in Washington, D.C.

The Duke Ellington Bridge, named after American jazz pianist Duke Ellington, carries Calvert Street NW over Rock Creek in Washington, D.C., United States. It connects 18th Street NW in Adams Morgan with Connecticut Avenue NW in Woodley Park, just north of the Taft Bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodley Park (Washington, D.C.)</span> United States historic place

Woodley Park is a neighborhood in Northwest, Washington, DC. It is bounded on the north by Woodley Road and Klingle Road, on the east by the National Zoo and Rock Creek Park, on the south by Calvert Street, on the southwest by Cleveland Avenue, and on the west by 34th Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roland Hinton Perry</span> American painter

Roland Hinton Perry was an American sculptor and painter.

<i>Fountain of Time</i> Sculpture by Lorado Taft in Chicago

Fountain of Time, or simply Time, is a sculpture by Lorado Taft, measuring 126 feet 10 inches (38.66 m) in length, situated at the western edge of the Midway Plaisance within Washington Park in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. The sculpture is inspired by Henry Austin Dobson's poem "Paradox of Time". Its 100 figures passing before Father Time were created as a monument to the 100 years of peace between the United States and the United Kingdom following the Treaty of Ghent in 1814. Father Time faces the 100 from across a water basin. The fountain's water was turned on in 1920, and the sculpture was dedicated in 1922. It is a contributing structure to the Washington Park United States Registered Historic District, which is a National Register of Historic Places listing.

<i>Columbus Fountain</i> Public artwork in Washington, DC

Columbus Fountain also known as the Columbus Memorial is a public artwork by American sculptor Lorado Taft, located at Union Station in Washington, D.C., United States. A centerpiece of Columbus Circle, Columbus Fountain serves as a tribute to the explorer Christopher Columbus. The unveiling in 1912 was celebrated all over Washington, DC over the course of three days with parades, concerts and fireworks gathering tens of thousands of people from all over the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Paul Jones Memorial</span> Statue by Charles Henry Niehaus in Washington, D.C, U.S.

The John Paul Jones Memorial, also known as Commodore John Paul Jones, is a monument in West Potomac Park, Washington, D.C. The memorial honors John Paul Jones, the United States' first naval war hero, and received the Congressional Gold Medal after the American Revolutionary War ended. Jones allegedly said "I have not yet begun to fight!" during the Battle of Flamborough Head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Klingle Valley Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Klingle Valley Bridge, officially known as the Connecticut Avenue Bridge, is an Art Deco steel-arch bridge located near the National Zoological Park on Connecticut Avenue, Northwest in Washington, D.C. The bridge crosses Klingle Valley, running from Macomb Street to Devonshire Place and connecting the Cleveland Park and Woodley Park neighborhoods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of Philip Sheridan (Washington, D.C.)</span> Bronze sculpture by Gutzon Borglum

General Philip Sheridan is a bronze sculpture that honors Civil War general Philip Sheridan. The monument was sculpted by Gutzon Borglum, best known for his design of Mount Rushmore. Dedicated in 1908, dignitaries in attendance at the unveiling ceremony included President Theodore Roosevelt, members of the President's cabinet, high-ranking military officers and veterans from the Civil War and Spanish–American War. The equestrian statue is located in the center of Sheridan Circle in the Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The bronze statue, surrounded by a plaza and park, is one of eighteen Civil War monuments in Washington, D.C., which were collectively listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The sculpture and surrounding park are owned and maintained by the National Park Service, a federal agency of the Interior Department.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equestrian statue of George B. McClellan</span> Equestrian statue in Washington, D.C.

Major General George B. McClellan is an equestrian statue in Washington, D.C. that honors politician and Civil War general George B. McClellan. The monument is sited on a prominent location in the Kalorama Triangle neighborhood due to efforts made by area residents. The statue was sculpted by American artist Frederick William MacMonnies, a graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts whose best known work is a statue of Nathan Hale in New York City. MacMonnies was chosen to design the statue following a lengthy competition organized by a statue commission, led by then Secretary of War William Howard Taft. The monument was dedicated in 1907, with prominent attendees at the ceremony including President Theodore Roosevelt, New York City mayor George B. McClellan Jr., politicians, generals and thousands of military personnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Court of Neptune Fountain</span> United States historic place

The Court of Neptune Fountain is a fountain adorned with bronze sculptures made by Roland Hinton Perry and Albert Weinert in the late 1890s. Jerome Connor may have assisted in their manufacture. The architects for the project, which was completed in 1898, included John L. Smithmeyer, Paul J. Pelz, and Edward Pearce Casey, while the founding was completed by the Henry-Bonnard Bronze Company. The fountain is located on the west side of the Thomas Jefferson Building, the main building for the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The project took three years to complete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephenson Grand Army of the Republic Memorial</span> Public artwork by J. Massey Rhind

The Stephenson Grand Army of the Republic Memorial, also known as Dr. Benjamin F. Stephenson, is a public artwork in Washington, D.C. honoring Dr. Benjamin F. Stephenson, founder of the Grand Army of the Republic, a fraternal organization for Union veterans. The memorial is sited at Indiana Plaza, located at the intersection of 7th Street, Indiana Avenue, and Pennsylvania Avenue NW in the Penn Quarter neighborhood. The bronze figures were sculpted by J. Massey Rhind, a prominent 20th-century artist. Attendees at the 1909 dedication ceremony included President William Howard Taft, Senator William Warner, and hundreds of Union veterans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kalorama Triangle Historic District</span> Historic district in Washington, D.C., United States

The Kalorama Triangle Historic District is a mostly residential neighborhood and a historic district in the northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. The entire Kalorama Triangle neighborhood was listed on the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites (DCIHS) and National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1987. In addition to individually listed landmarks in the neighborhood, the district is home to roughly 350 contributing properties. The neighborhood is roughly bounded by Connecticut Avenue to the west, Columbia Road to the east, and Calvert Street on the north.

Ernest C. Bairstow (1876–1962) was an English-born American architectural sculptor noted for work on buildings in Washington, D.C., including the Lincoln Memorial.

References

  1. 1 2 "Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 6/30/03 through 7/05/03". National Park Service. July 11, 2003. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  3. 1 2 "District of Columbia - Inventory of Historic Sites" (PDF). Government of the District of Columbia. September 1, 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 18, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
  4. "Gen. Henry Newcomer Dies; Helped Develop Arterial Roads Here". The Evening Star . Washington, DC. December 5, 1952. p. A-26 via Newspapers.com.
  5. Donald Beekman Myer; Abba G. Lichtenstein (1996). "Washington, a City of Beautiful Bridges: Paradigms to Emulate". Transportation Research Record. United States National Research Council: 18–34. ISSN   0361-1981.
  6. Pringle, Henry F. (1939). The Life and Times of William Howard Taft: A Biography. Vol. 2 (2008 reprint ed.). Newtown, CT: American Political Biography Press. pp. 963–964, 1072. ISBN   978-0-945707-19-6.
  7. Myers, Aaron (October 2013). "Never Built: Metro's Bridge Over Rock Creek". Ghosts of DC. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  8. "Perry Lions, (sculpture)".
  9. "Roar Restored, Lions to Rule Bridge Again". The Washington Post . 2000-07-18. Retrieved 2019-08-24.
  10. "Professional Restoration---Taft Bridge Lions Project".
  11. "Press Release: New Bronze Lions at Connecticut Avenue Gate - National Zoo| FONZ". Archived from the original on 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2011-02-07.
  12. Theresa Vargas (2019-08-31). "Is a giant lion statue being stored under a D.C. tunnel? I decided to find out". The Washington Post . Retrieved 2019-08-31.
  13. Save Outdoor Sculptures! (1993). "Bairstow Eagle Lampposts (sculpture)". SOS!. Smithsonian. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  14. Al Kemp (2008). "Eagle eyes a must to notice swap". News. The News Journal. Retrieved 1 February 2011.[ dead link ]

Further reading