[WPTA] Fw: WPTA Run June 3

Sat May 27 17:46:32 MDT 2017

From: Rick Brown 
Subject: WPTA Run June 3

The Bold and the Beautiful

An educational run by Rick Brown

So, you want to know about the bridges?  Our 2 ½ hour route will take us over six bridges spanning the Ohio River between West Virginia and Ohio.  Three of the bridges are relatively modern four lane structures.  They include:

1.      The Fort Henry Bridge carrying Interstate 70 opened in 1955.  It is a tied-arch bridge with an exit onto Wheeling Island.  See the following for more detailed information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Henry_Bridge

     Fort Henry Bridge - Wikipedia
      en.wikipedia.org
      The Fort Henry Bridge is a crossing of the Ohio River main channel in Wheeling, West Virginia. The tied-arch bridge carries two lanes in each direction of Interstate ... 

2.      The Jennings Randolph Bridge carrying US Route 30 opened in 1977.  With a main span of 754 feet, it is the largest bridge of its type (Pratt through truss) in North America.  More information at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennings_Randolph_Bridge

     Jennings Randolph Bridge - Wikipedia
      en.wikipedia.org
      The Jennings Randolph Bridge, built in 1977, is the largest Pratt truss bridge in North America. It spans 754 feet (230 m) over the Ohio River between Chester, West ... 

3.      The Veterans Memorial Bridge carrying PA Route 22 opened in 1990.  This is a beautiful single tower “cable-stayed” design, where the cables run directly from the tower to the deck forming a fan like pattern.  This is in contrast to the modern suspension bridge, where the secondary cables run vertically from the main cable to the bridge deck.  This bridge is 1,964 feet long, and took 11 years and 70 million dollars to complete.   See:  http://www.transportation.wv.gov/highways/bridge_facts/Modern-Bridges/Pages/VeteransMemorial(Weirton-Steubenville).aspx

     Veterans Memorial (Weirton-Steubenville)
      www.transportation.wv.gov
      Veterans Memorial (Weirton-Steubenville) Similar in appearance to the Ohio River crossing at East Huntington more than 200 miles to the south, the ... 

The other three bridges are each over 100 years old, one lane in each direction, and use open grate decking – all the better to see the Ohio River!  They include:

1.      The Newell Bridge, built in 1905, has had no major alterations since completion.  http://historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=wvirginia/newell/  The Newell Bridge is privately owned, and is operated as a toll bridge.  It will cost you 75 cents one way.  It is a cable suspension bridge with riveted Double-Intersection Warren through truss stiffening. The main cable is a wire cable, while the suspenders are steel rods with eyes and turnbuckles.

     Newell Bridge - HistoricBridges.org
      historicbridges.org
      Historic Suspension Bridge in East Liverpool and Newell Columbiana County, Ohio and Hancock County, West Virginia. This spectacular structure is among the last ... 

2.      The Market Street Bridge, also built in 1905, has had its share of problems.  http://historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=ohio/market/ In 1922, the top chord of the bridge failed, and David Steinman (who later engineered the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan) designed repairs that also increased its load-bearing capacity.  The approach truss spans remain original.  The original steel for the bridge was fabricated by Jones and Laughlin and Bethlehem Steel companies

     Market Street Bridge - HistoricBridges.org
      historicbridges.org
      Historic Suspension Bridge in Steubenville and East Steubenville Jefferson County, Ohio and Brooke County, West Virginia. This mighty suspension bridge with tunnel ... 

3.      The Wheeling Suspension Bridge, the crown jewel of our trip, is one of the few bridges in the entire country to be designated as a National Historic Landmark.  http://historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=wvirginia/wheeling/        This bridge was completed in 1849 – eleven years before the start of the American Civil War, and almost 50 years before the advent of the automobile. Currently, the bridge has a vehicle weight limit of 4,000 lbs, and traffic is advised to keep at least 50 feet between vehicles.  Additionally, traffic lights at both ends restrict the number of cars allowed on the bridge at any one time.

     Wheeling Suspension Bridge - HistoricBridges.org
      historicbridges.org
      Historic Suspension Bridge in Wheeling Ohio County, West Virginia. This is the most significant pre-Civil War bridge in the United States! 

The Wheeling Suspension Bridge was the center of a Supreme Court fight between Wheeling WV and Pittsburgh PA, located 50 miles upstream.  Pittsburgh claimed that the Wheeling Bridge obstructed steamboat traffic along the Ohio River, thereby affecting the Pittsburgh economy.  In May 1852 the Court decided that the bridge did indeed obstruct steamboat traffic and ordered that the bridge either be rebuilt higher or be torn down altogether.

Not to be outdone, the residents of Wheeling, backed by the legislatures of Virginia and Indiana, went to Congress to ask that the bridge be declared part of the US 40 military and postal road.  Three months after the court ruling, Congress sided with Wheeling and declared the bridge a necessary part of the US 40 postal and military road.

That ruling put a temporary halt to the Wheeling/Pittsburgh court battle for two more years, until a strong windstorm in 1854 destroyed the deck of the then five-year-old bridge.  Pittsburgh again took the matter to the Supreme Court, but ended up losing this time because of the military road designation.

The windstorm that destroyed the bridge created torsional movement and vertical undulations that rose almost as high as the towers.

http://www.ohiocountylibrary.org/wheeling-history/suspension-bridge-collapse-may-17-1854/3288   The original designer, Charles Ellet, rebuilt the bridge in 1859 with improvements taken from the designs of John Roebling.

      Wheeling History > Suspension Bridge Collapse: May 17 ...
      www.ohiocountylibrary.org
      With feelings of unutterable sorrow, we announce that the noble and world renowned structure, the WHEELING SUSPENSION BRIDGE, has been swept from its strong holds by ... 

And one more interesting thought -- a 1953 report indicates that the current suspension cables are either the original cables (salvaged from the river after the windstorm), or the work of the 1859 reconstruction.  Either way, they are well over 150 years old.

Check out the links if you have an interest in bridges, and/or historical structures.  It will make your trip across the river even more interesting if you have a background.

Rick Brown

PS:  Don’t forget to pre-register for British Car Day at the PVGP

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