Carrollton Viaduct

Carrollton Viaduct

Infobox_Bridge
bridge_name=Carrollton Viaduct


caption=Carrollton Viaduct in 1971
official_name=
carries=Two tracks of CSX Transportation
crosses=Gwynn's Falls
locale=Baltimore, Maryland
maint=CSX Transportation
id=
design=Arch bridge
mainspan=80 feet (24 m)
length=312 feet (95 m)
width=
clearance=
below=51 feet, 9 inches (15.8 m)
traffic=
open=1829
coordinates=coord|39|16|32|N|76|39|18|W|type:landmark
lat=
long=

Infobox_nrhp | name =Carrollton Viaduct
nrhp_type =nhl


caption =
location= Baltimore, Maryland
lat_degrees = 39
lat_minutes = 16
lat_seconds = 30.96
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 76
long_minutes = 39
long_seconds = 19.04
long_direction = W
locmapin = Maryland
area =
built =1828
architect= James Lloyd; Caspar Weaver
architecture=
designated= November 11, 1971cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1177&ResourceType=Structure
title=Carrollton Viaduct |accessdate=2007-10-08|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service
]
added = November 11, 1971cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]
governing_body = Private
refnum=71001032

The Carrollton Viaduct, located over Gwynn's Falls near Carroll Park in Baltimore, Maryland, is the first stone masonry bridge built for railroad use in the United States.

The bridge is currently the world's oldest railroad bridge still in use, carrying loads far greater than originally envisioned. [cite web| url=http://www.ce.jhu.edu/mdcive/carrollton.htm| title=Carrollton Viaduct| author=Johns Hopkins University, Department of Civil Engineering| accessdate=April 5| accessyear=2006| ] It was named after Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the last living signer of the Declaration of Independence, who laid the cornerstone on July 4, 1828. [cite web| url=http://cprr.org/Museum/Railroad_Builders/Railroad_Builders_05.html| title=The Railroad Builders| author=John Moody (1919)| accessdate=April 6| accessyear=2006| (The HAER report states that the cornerstone was laid in May 1828.)] As he laid the first stone he said: "I consider this among the most important acts of my life, second only to my signing the Declaration of Independence." Builder Caspar Weaver and designer James Lloyd completed the structure for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in November 1829, at the cost of $58,106.73.

The bridge, 312 feet (95 m) in length, rises from its foundations about 65 feet (20 m). It is 51 feet, 9 inches (15.8 m) above Gwynn's Falls. It consists of a full-centered arch with a clear span length of 80 feet (24 m) over the stream, and a space for two railroad tracks on its deck. To provide an underpass for a wagon road, an arched passageway, 16 feet (5 m) in width, was built through one of the masonry-walled approaches. Originally planned as one arch of 40 feet (12 m) chord, the dimensions were enlarged to quiet the concern of the proprietor of the mills located immediately above the bridge site, who feared that 40 feet would be insufficient if the stream was flooded. The heavy granite blocks which form the arches and exterior walls were procured from Ellicott's Mills and Port Deposit. A temporary wooden framework supporting the central span held 1,500 tons (1,360 tonnes) of this stone during construction. A white cornerstone at one end of the bridge bears the inscription "James Lloyd of Maryland, Builder A.D. 1829."

Andrew Jackson, the first President of the United States to ride on a railroad train, crossed the bridge on a trip between Ellicott's Mills and Baltimore on June 6, 1833. The Carrollton Viaduct has provided continual service to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and its modern corporate successor, CSX Transportation.

The viaduct was designated a National Historic Landmark on November 11, 1971 and was automatically listed on the National Register of Historic Places the same day.citation|title=PDFlink| [http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Text/71001032.pdf National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Carrollton Viaduct] |282 KiB |date=August 5, 1971 |author=W. Brown Morton III |publisher=National Park Service. PDFlink| [http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Photos/71001032.pdf Accompanying 2 photos, from 1971.] |320 KiB ]

In 1982 it was designated a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

References and footnotes

*cite book | author=Cook, Richard J. | title=The Beauty of Railroad Bridges in North America -- Then and Now| publisher=Golden West Books, California (USA) | year=1987 | id=ISBN 0-87095-097-5

* Historic American Engineering Record survey No. HAER MD,4-BALT, 129- "Significance" section.

External links

* [http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1177&ResourceType=Structure National Historic Landmark information]
* [http://www.nr.nps.gov/Red%20Books/71001032.red.pdf National Register information]
* [http://www.nr.nps.gov/writeups/71001032.nl.pdf NPS write-up]
* [http://www.asce.org/history/brdg_carrolton.swf American Society of Civil Engineers - Carrollton Viaduct]
* [http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hh:@field(DOCID+@lit(MD0908)) Library of Congress HABS/HAER - Carrollton Viaduct]
* [http://www.marylandhistoricaltrust.net/nr/NRDetail.aspx?HDID=78&FROM=NRNHLList.aspx Carrollton Viaduct, Baltimore City] , including photo, at Maryland Historical Trust


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Patterson Viaduct — Infobox Bridge bridge name =Patterson Viaduct caption = Patterson Viaduct Ruins, 1970 official name = Patterson Viaduct crosses = Patapsco River (before 1868) locale = Ilchester, Maryland design = Arch bridge mainspan = 55 feet (17 m) length =… …   Wikipedia

  • List of National Historic Landmarks in Maryland — This is a List of National Historic Landmarks in Maryland. There are currently 71 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) in Maryland. Also included are short lists of former NHLs and of other historic sites of national importance administered by the… …   Wikipedia

  • Baltimore and Ohio Railroad — Infobox SG rail railroad name=Baltimore and Ohio Railroad logo filename=Baltimore and Ohio Herald.png logo size=100 system map size =260 map caption =1876 B O map old gauge= marks=BO locale=New York City, New York via Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks — The following is a list of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks as designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers since it began the program in 1964. The designation is granted to projects, structures, and sites in the United States… …   Wikipedia

  • Oldest railroads in North America — Several railroads have been called the oldest in North America. Contents 1 Early experimental railroads 2 The Granite, Coal and Cotton Railroads 3 Common carriers 4 …   Wikipedia

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in South and Southeast Baltimore — NRHP listings in South and Southeast Baltimore Map of all coordinates from Google Map of all coordinates from Bing …   Wikipedia

  • List of historic civil engineering landmarks — The following is a partial list of historic civil engineering landmarks as designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers since it began the program in 1964. The designation is granted to projects, structures, and sites in the United… …   Wikipedia

  • List of rail accidents (pre-1950) — For a list of 1950 1999 rail accidents, see List of 1950 1999 rail accidents.For a list of post 2000 rail accidents, see List of rail accidents. notoc Pre 1830 1815 * 1815, exact date unclear ndash; Philadelphia, Co Durham, England: 16 people,… …   Wikipedia

  • 1828 in rail transport — EventsFebruary events* February The Chesterfield Railroad, the first railroad built in Virginia is chartered. March events * March 24 Pennsylvania s first state owned railway, the Philadelphia and Columbia Railway, is authorized by the state… …   Wikipedia

  • 1829 in rail transport — Events August events * August 8 The Stourbridge Lion , the first steam locomotive delivered to the Delaware and Hudson Railway, operates for the first time in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. * August 25 Tom Thumb , the first American built steam… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”