Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
September 3, 2013 A bicycle-and-pedestrian path on the newly constructed eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (famously nicknamed the Bay Bridge) made its debut. The noontime opening of the completed two-thirds of the path took place the day after the roadway portion of the new span was inaugurated. A segment of the original... Continue Reading →
August 28, 2018 In England’s North East region, the recently completed Northern Spire Bridge within the city and metropolitan borough of Sunderland was opened to pedestrians. This two-span cable-stayed bridge carries the highway A1231 over the River Wear and serves as a link between the Sunderland suburbs of Pallion and Castletown. The 1,102-foot (336-meter)-long structure... Continue Reading →
August 25, 1860 The Victoria Bridge in Canada was dedicated. This bridge, which spans the St. Lawrence River and connects Montreal with the south shore city of Saint-Lambert, was officially opened about eight months after the first trains had passed over the new structure. The Victoria Bridge was the first bridge over the St. Lawrence... Continue Reading →
 August 14, 1929 Despite rainy weather, the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge spanning the Delaware River made its debut amid great fanfare. This steel arch, double-leaf bascule structure links the borough of Palmyra, New Jersey, with the Tacony neighborhood in northeast Philadelphia. The bridge, which replaced a ferry service that had been operating in the vicinity since 1922, was designed by... Continue Reading →
July 31, 1907 In Massachusetts, a new bridge spanning across the Charles River and connecting Boston’s Beacon Hill area with the Kendall Square community of Cambridge was officially dedicated. The North Adams Transcript reported, “The structure is unusually well lighted and one of its features which contribute to its reputation as one of the most beautiful... Continue Reading →
July 30, 1952 The Chesapeake Bay Bridge, which connects the Eastern Shore of Maryland with the state’s Western Shore, was opened to traffic. At the time of its debut, this bridge -- with the original span measuring 4.3 miles (6.9 kilometers) in length from shore to shore -- was the world’s longest continuous steel structure... Continue Reading →
July 22, 1997 Nearly six decades after the inauguration of the original Blue Water Bridge between Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario, an additional span for this structure was opened to motor vehicles. The construction of this new span, which is also known as the Second Blue Water Bridge, was a joint project of... Continue Reading →
July 20, 1934 In California, construction began on a new bridge that would cross the Sacramento River and connect the state capital of Sacramento in Sacramento County with the city of West Sacramento in Yolo County. This vertical lift bridge was built to replace the M Street Bridge, which was owned by the Sacramento Northern Railway.... Continue Reading →
June 23, 1998 Bangabandhu Bridge, which crosses the Jamuna River in north-central Bangladesh, made its debut. This road-rail bridge serves as a key link between the upazila (administrative region) of Bhuapur on the east side of the Jamuna River and the city of Sirajganj on the river’s west bank. Bangabandhu Bridge was officially opened by... Continue Reading →
June 18, 2018 As work on a suspension pedestrian bridge in Australia neared completion, the LED lighting on that new structure was officially tested for the first time. This Monday evening trial run, according to the West Australian newspaper, was held “with the inclement weather failing to dampen the colorful display.” The bridge crosses over... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 