Sheffield Street Bridge

Last updated
Sheffield Street Bridge
Sheffield Street Bridge spanning Hancock Brook. 9-17-2013.JPG
USA Connecticut location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationSheffield St. over Hancock Brook, Waterbury, Connecticut
Coordinates 41°35′50″N73°02′52″W / 41.59722°N 73.04778°W / 41.59722; -73.04778 (Sheffield Street Bridge) Coordinates: 41°35′50″N73°02′52″W / 41.59722°N 73.04778°W / 41.59722; -73.04778 (Sheffield Street Bridge)
Arealess than one acre
Built1884 (1884)
Built byBerlin Iron Bridge Co.
Architectural styleLenticular pony truss
NRHP reference No. 01000353 [1]
Added to NRHPApril 12, 2001

The Sheffield Street Bridge is a historic lenticular truss bridge spanning Hancock Brook in Waterbury, Connecticut. Built in 1884, it is a rare example of a wrought iron bridge built by the Berlin Iron Bridge Co., and one of the few surviving lenticular truss bridges left in the state. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. [1]

Contents

Description and history

The Sheffield Street Bridge is located in remote setting in northern Waterbury, off the end of Sheffield Street near a stone quarry. It spans Hancock Brook about 20 feet (6.1 m) above the water, and is mounted on stone abutments. It is 56 feet (17 m) long and 18 feet (5.5 m), and would normally carry two lanes of traffic, if its wooden deck was still usable. Its trusses are fashioned out of four-panel lenticular trusses, supported by posts on the abutments. [2]

The bridge was built in 1884, when this area had a much more substantial industrial presence. It was built by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, one of the largest makers of steel and iron bridges in New England in the late 19th century. The bridge was deliberately built for heavy-duty use, to serve the industries in the area. Its design is typical of the company's early works, with wrought iron elements of the truss joined by pins instead of rivets. At the time of its listing on the National Register in 2001, it was one of only seventeen surviving lenticular truss bridges in the state, and one of the few that predates a period when their construction became more standardized. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

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

The Interlaken Mill Bridge is an historic bridge spanning the Pawtuxet River at the site of the former Arkwright and Interlaken mill complexes in Coventry, Rhode Island. The lenticular pony truss bridge was built in 1885 by the Interlaken Corporation to provide a direct connection between the mill sites, having recently (1883) acquired the Arkwright property. The trusses were manufactured by the Berlin Iron Bridge Co. of Berlin, Connecticut. The bridge is a single span measuring 92 feet (28 m) in length and just under 19 feet (5.8 m) in width, resting on stone abutments.

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

The Golden Hill Bridge is a historic bridge on Golden Hill Road over the Housatonic River in Lee, Massachusetts. It is a lenticular pony truss bridge built c. 1885 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, and is the state's oldest surviving bridge of this type. It is one of only five Berlin Co. bridges in the Berkshires, and is the only known surviving bridge to implement modifications to the pony truss design patented by William O. Douglas in 1885. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Housatonic River Railroad Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Housatonic River Railroad Bridge is a historic bridge carrying Metro-North Railroad's New Haven Line trackage across the lower Housatonic River in the U.S. state of Connecticut. The bridge is also used by Amtrak for its Northeast Corridor services. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987, which also refers to the bridge as the Devon Bridge. It is also referred to as the Devon Railroad Bridge by the state Department of Environmental Protection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hadley Parabolic Bridge</span> Bridge in NY, USA

The Hadley Parabolic Bridge, often referred to locally as the Hadley Bow Bridge, carries Corinth Road across the Sacandaga River in Hadley, New York, United States. It is an iron bridge dating from the late 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lover's Leap Bridge</span> United States Historic Place

The Lover's Leap Bridge is a wrought-iron lenticular truss bridge over the Housatonic River located in Lovers Leap State Park in New Milford, Connecticut. Built in 1895 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, it is one of the last bridges built by the company and is a particularly ornate example of its work. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and is now open only for foot traffic.

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

The Glen Falls Bridge is a historic bridge that formerly carried Brunswick Avenue over the Moosup River in Plainfield, Connecticut. Built in 1886 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, it is one of a shrinking number of surviving 19th-century lenticular truss bridges in the state. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. It has been closed to all traffic for many years.

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

The Ashland Mill Bridge was a lenticular pony truss bridge over the Pachaug River in Griswold, Connecticut that was built in 1886 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company. It was built following the Ashland dam break of February 1886 which washed away the previous bridges. The bridge served the millyard of the Ashland Cotton Company, in the Jewett City section of Griswold. The bridge was 65 feet (20 m) long and crossed a millrace on a skew angle. The Ashland Mill was damaged by arson in March 1995 and subsequently torn down, but the bridge itself remained. By 1999, the town deemed the bridge unsafe and closed it, and by February 1999, the bridge was moved to a vacant parking lot and was replaced with a new bridge. The bridge was added to the state of Connecticut historic register and it was later added to the National Register of Historic Places in April 1999. It was removed from the National Register in February 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hancock Brook Trail</span>

The 'Hancock Brook Trail' is a 2.8-mile (4.5 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail Waterville Section of the City of Waterbury in New Haven County close to the borders of Thomaston and Plymouth, Litchfield County, Connecticut. It is contained overwhelmingly in a section of the Mattatuck State Forest bounded by Hancock Brook on the east, Thomaston Avenue on the west and Spruce Brook Road / Route 262 to the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turn-of-River Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Turn-of-River Bridge, also known as Old North Stamford Road Bridge, is a single-span lenticular pony truss bridge built by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company in 1892. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It formerly brought the Old Stamford Road across the Rippowam River, but is now open only to pedestrian traffic, as the road ends shortly before the bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin Iron Bridge Co.</span> American company (1868–1900)

The Berlin Iron Bridge Company was a Berlin, Connecticut company that built iron bridges and buildings that were supported by iron. It is credited as the architect of numerous bridges and buildings now listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. It eventually became part of the American Bridge Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walton Bridge (Keene, New York)</span> United States historic place

The Walton Bridge in Keene, New York was built in c. 1890. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. It was destroyed in the flooding caused by Tropical Storm Irene on August 29, 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Main Street Bridge (Stamford, Connecticut)</span> United States historic place

The Main Street Bridge formerly carried Main Street over the Rippowam River just outside downtown Stamford, Connecticut. It was designed and manufactured by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company in 1888. It is a two-span wrought iron lenticular truss bridge, each span 60 feet (18 m) long, although there are supporting piers every 12 feet (3.7 m) feet. The abutments and central pier are cut granite and other stone, faced in concrete.

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

The Butts Bridge carries Butts Bridge Road over the Quinebaug River in the town of Canterbury, Connecticut. It is a well-preserved example of a Parker truss, built in 1937, late in the state's regular use of steel truss bridge designs. The bridge is also known as Bridge No. 1649 and carries an average of 2,300 vehicles per day as of 2011. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rice Farm Road Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Rice Farm Road Bridge is a historic bridge in Dummerston, Vermont. It is an iron Warren through truss, spanning the West River between Vermont Route 30 and Rice Farm Road. Built in 1892, it is one of the state's oldest surviving metal truss bridges. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas & Jarvis Patent Parabolic Truss Iron Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Douglas & Jarvis Patent Parabolic Truss Iron Bridge is a historic bridge across the Missisquoi River in Highgate, Vermont. Located at the end of Mill Hill Road, it is at 215 feet (66 m) one of the longest bridges of its type in the northeastern United States. It was built in 1887, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

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

The Old Boardman Bridge, formerly Boardman Bridge, is a historic lenticular truss bridge, which used to carry Boardman Road across the Housatonic River in New Milford, Connecticut. Built from 1887 to 1888 out of wrought iron, it is one of the state's three surviving examples of this bridge type, and along with Lover's Leap Bridge, one of two in New Milford. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The bridge was closed to vehicles in 1984 and to pedestrians in 1985; however, the Town of New Milford is seeking to restore it and reopen it to pedestrian traffic.

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

The Minortown Road Bridge is a historic lenticular pony truss bridge in northeastern Woodbury, Connecticut. It spans the Nonewaug River, connecting U.S. Route 6 (US 6) to Minortown Road and Mill Road. Built in 1890 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, it is one a small number of surviving lenticular truss bridges in the state. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

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

The Melrose Road Bridge is a historic bridge at the western end of Melrose Road in East Windsor, Connecticut. Built in 1888, it is one of a small number of surviving 19th-century lenticular pony truss bridge in the state. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. It has been closed for many years, and lacks stringers and decking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Bridge (Meriden, Connecticut)</span> United States historic place

The Red Bridge is a historic bridge spanning the Quinnipiac River near Oregon Road in Meriden, Connecticut. It was built in 1891 by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, and is one of a small number of surviving lenticular truss bridges in the state, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. The bridge is open to pedestrian traffic only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Avenue Bridge (Waterbury, Connecticut)</span> United States historic place

The Washington Avenue Bridge is a historic lenticular truss bridge carrying Washington Avenue over the Mad River in Waterbury, Connecticut. Built in 1881, it is the oldest known surviving example of a lenticular pony truss bridge built by the Corrugated Metal Company, later known as the Berlin Iron Bridge Company, a prolific bridge maker in New England of the late 19th century. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. 1 2 "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Sheffield Street Bridge". National Park Service . Retrieved April 17, 2021. With accompanying pictures