Glimmer Glass Bridge

The Glimmer Glass Bridge is a bridge located in Manasquan, New Jersey. It carries traffic from Brielle Road over the Glimmer Glass, a navigable tidal inlet of the Manasquan River. It is owned by County of Monmouth.

The Glimmer Glass Bridge was built in 1898. It is a cable lift bascule bridge, using a rolling counterweight design. The bridge was modernized in 1957. However, the integrity of the original design has been maintained and it operates in the original manner.

It is 279 feet long and 20 feet wide. It has 17 spans. [ [http://www.preservationnj.org/ten_most/ten_most_property_detail.asp?COUNTY=Monmouth%20County&PropID=106 Endangered Historic Site: Monmouth County - Glimmer Glass Bridge, 204] , Preservation New Jersey. Accessed July 22, 2007.] The rolling counterweight single-leaf bascule bridge with a deck girder movable leaf is the only example of the late 19th century bridge type in the state of New Jersey and possibly the entire country. [ [http://www.hjgaconsulting.com/cultural002.htm Glimmerglass Road Bridge] , HJGA Consulting Architecture and Historic Preservation. Accessed July 22, 2007.] It was, at the time, a popular design for railroads in New Jersey for spanning canals.

"Scientific American" in 1896 described a recently completed, nearby bridge on the Erie Railroad on its main line over Berrys Creek near Rutherford, New Jersey

"...although the principle behind the design is not entirely new, the Berry's Creek Bridge is the first application of this system of counter weighing for a structure of this magnitude."

The bridge uses a curved track and rolling counterweights. The work expended in raising the leaf is equal to the energy released by the falling counterweight. The toe end of the moveable span is linked by cables to cylindrical rolling counterweights. The connecting cable passes over a tower column with a curved track. Moving the counterweights along the curved track raises or lowers the bridge [A.G. Lichtenstein & Associates, 1995 NJDOT Bridge Survey] .

The Glimmer Glass Bridge is located in a salt marsh lowland surrounded by what was once a seasonal community of small bungalows and cottages. However the structures have been modified and new homes have been built in Manasquan and neighboring Brielle, leaving the area near the bridge not eligible for historic district status as determined by the State of New Jersey.

The designer and builder of the Glimmer Glass Bridge are unknown, according to the Monmouth County Engineer's Office citation needed.

Glimmer Glass Ghost

Rumors of a Glimmer Glass Ghost have circulated throughout the local area since the mid 1960s. According to local folklore, the bridge was used to lynch African Americans throughout the early twentieth century and in the years since, numerous ghost sightings have been reported on the bridge. A number of clairvoyants and other mystical practitioners have been among those calling for the demolition and replacement of the bridge, contending that the restless souls that haunt the structure will not sleep until the bridge is destroyed.

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