The Groton Bridge Co. was an American construction company, based in Groton, New York. [1]
The company was founded in 1877 as Groton Iron Bridge Company, by merger of two firms. It was reorganized and became the Groton Bridge and Manufacturing Company in 1887. It was purchased by the American Bridge Company in 1899 but was separated in 1902 as Groton Bridge Co. and survived under that name until the 1920s. [1]
The firm was believed to be a subsidiary of American Bridge Co. in 1908 when it installed two Parker truss spans manufactured by American Bridge Co. to complete the Plata Bridge in Puerto Rico. [2] [3]
A number of its works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. [4]
The La Plata River is the longest river in Puerto Rico. It is located in the north coast of the island. It flows from south to north, and drains into the Atlantic Ocean about 11 miles (18 km) west of San Juan. The mouth of the river is a resort area with white sandy beaches.
Puerto Rico Highway 167 (PR-167) is one of the main highways in the San Juan–Caguas–Guaynabo metropolitan area of Puerto Rico. Highway 167 starts at Puerto Rico Highway 165 in Levittown and goes until Puerto Rico Highway 156 in Comerío.
The Villarán Bridge, also known as the Canóvanas Bridge, is a historic bridge over the Canóvanas River in Canóvanas, Puerto Rico. Built in 1892 on the highway between Río Piedras and Río Grande, its iron superstructure was imported from Europe and set on masonry abutments. It is the best-preserved example of an Eiffel pony truss bridge in Puerto Rico or the United States. By 1994, the bridge had been replaced by an adjacent span for vehicular use, but it remained open for pedestrian use.
Manatí Bridge at Mata de Plátano, also known as Puente Juan José Jiménez and listed as Bridge #321 in Puerto Rico's bridge inventory, was built in 1905 in Hato Viejo, Ciales, Puerto Rico. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995 and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2001.
Bridge No. 122, spanning the Santiago River near Naguabo, Puerto Rico, is significant as "one of the earliest and most elegant examples of concrete beam bridges in Puerto Rico". Built in 1918, it was "futuristic" for its time and has noteworthy architectural detail relative to others. It was designed by Rafael Nones and built by Felix Benitez-Rexach, both engineers, both regarded as masters in their work. Its construction was financed by Puerto Rico's second public bond issue for public works, in 1916, which raised $2 million.
Puente de las Calabazas is a single-span lattice girder bridge over the Cuyón River near Coamo, Puerto Rico on the Carreterra Central that dates from 1882. It was designed by Ricardo Camprubi and was fabricated by Eugen Rollin and Co., a Belgian firm that exported via Spain from Braine le Comte, Belgium. Prolific engineer Camprubí designed several single span lattice bridges in Puerto Rico. He also designed the first two-span lattice girder bridge in Puerto Rico, the Padre Inigo Bridge, which is also NRHP-listed. All of these were part of the Carretera Central.
Plata Bridge, listed in Puerto Rico's bridge inventory as Bridge #374 and now also known as Antiguo Puente Plata, was built in 1908. It is significant as "the only extant large multi span truss bridge in Puerto Rico", according to its nomination document for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. It includes two Parker truss spans and was built in 1908. It brought what is now Puerto Rico Highway 167 across the Rio La Plata, spanning from Bayamon municipality and into Naranjito, and connected several mountain towns to the coastal road along Puerto Rico's north coast.
The Arenas Bridge is a truss bridge built in 1894 between the municipalities of Cayey and Cidra in Puerto Rico. Also known as Puente Rio La Plata, it was the longest bridge constructed in Puerto Rico during the Spanish colonial period. It crosses the Rio de la Plata, the longest river in Puerto Rico. According to the U.S. National Park Service, "[t]his is the most important metal bridge in Puerto Rico from the period." The bridge is still standing.
The Carretera Central is a historic north–south central highway in Puerto Rico, linking the cities of San Juan and Ponce by way of Río Piedras, Caguas, Cayey, Aibonito, Coamo, and Juana Díaz. It crosses the Cordillera Central. Plans for the road started in the first half of the 19th century, and the road was fully completed in 1898. At the time the United States took possession of Puerto Rico in 1898, the Americans called it "the finest road in the Western Hemisphere."
This portion of National Register of Historic Places listings in Puerto Rico is along the central mountain region, from Las Marías and Maricao in the central-west to Juncos in the central-east, including the slopes of the Cordillera.
Canton Bridge Company was a firm that was later incorporated into the American Bridge Company. The firm was established in Canton, Ohio, in 1892 and became one of the nation's biggest bridge-builders during the early 20th century. It designed and/or built many bridges that later became listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).
The Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co., also known as Missouri Valley Bridge Company, was a engineering, construction, and steel fabrication firm that operated through the late nineteenth and most of the twentieth centuries. It was based in Leavenworth, Kansas, with a WWII facility in Evansville, Indiana.
The Hondo River Bridge was a historic bridge over the Hondo River in Comerío municipality, Puerto Rico. As of 1995, it was the oldest bridge truss in Puerto Rico, employing a double Warren pony truss design and unique open web transverse joists. It was originally installed in 1881 as one of three spans of the Reyes Católicos Bridge over the Plata River on the San Juan–Mayagüez road, using metal parts fabricated in Belgium. After a hurricane destroyed one of the other spans of the Reyes Católicos Bridge in 1899, this surviving span was moved and re-installed on new abutments under the supervision of engineer Rafael Nones in 1908, as part of the Comerío–Barranquitas road. It was finally removed and replaced in 2001.
The Puente Río Portugués is a historic bridge over the former course of the Río Portugués in barrio Playa in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The bridge was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2015. The bridge is prominent as "the oldest longitudinal steel beams / reinforced concrete bridge built within the historic Carretera Central". It is located on Avenida Hostos, just south of its intersection with Ponce By Pass.
The General Norzagaray Bridge is a brick and masonry barrel vault bridge built in 1855 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Also known as Puente de los Frailes, it brings what is now Puerto Rico Highway 873 across Frailes Creek, a tributary to the Guaynabo River. It has eight 9.8-metre (32 ft) barrel vault spans. Its total length is 120.7 metres (396 ft) and its roadway width is 7.00 metres (22.97 ft). It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1995, and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2000.
The Cayey Bridge, also known as Puente de Cayey, is an iron lateral lattice girder bridge in Puerto Rico that was built in 1891. It brings Puerto Rico Highway 15 over the Guamaní River. Despite its name, its actually closer to the city of Guayama and not Cayey.
The West Woodstock Bridge is a historic steel bridge, carrying Mill Road across the Ottauquechee River in the village of West Woodstock, Vermont. Built in 1900, it is the oldest documented Pennsylvania through truss bridge in the state. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
The Puente de Añasco, also called Puente Salcedo, is a bridge spanning between Añasco, Puerto Rico and Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. It is located at Kilometer 146.1 of Highway 2.
The La Liendre Bridge, spanning Beatriz Creek, a tributary to the Río de la Plata, between Cayey, Puerto Rico and Cidra, Puerto Rico. It was built in 1877 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995, and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2000.
The Río Matón Bridge, in Matón Abajo, a barrio of Cayey, Puerto Rico, was built in 1886. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995 and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2000.