Cumberland Valley Railroad Bridge
| Cumberland Valley Railroad Bridge | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coordinates | 40°15′08″N 76°53′06″W / 40.2523°N 76.8851°WCoordinates: 40°15′08″N 76°53′06″W / 40.2523°N 76.8851°W |
| Carries | vacant |
| Crosses | Susquehanna River |
| Locale | Cumberland County, Pennsylvania and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania |
The Cumberland Valley Railroad Bridge is a currently unused railroad bridge.
The bridge links downtown Harrisburg, City Island, and the western suburbs of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The bridge was originally constructed by the Cumberland Valley Railroad as part of the mainline from Harrisburg to Hagerstown via Chambersburg. The Cumberland Valley Railroad itself was leased as a subsidiary by the Pennsylvania Railroad.
The crossing, a wooden covered bridge, was erected here in 1839. The original structure was destroyed by fire in 1844, rebuilt in 1846 and renovated and upgraded in 1856, 1872 and 1885. In 1887, the old wooden covered span was replaced by an open iron truss bridge, which by then served dozens of trains daily. The present concrete structure was completed c. 1916. Although abandoned for rail use over the past several decades, the bridge is poised to be the principal crossing for the Corridor One rail commuter system to serve the renewed rail needs of the metropolitan area and of Harrisburg's west shore. Immediately to the south of the Cumberland Valley Bridge, a similar iron truss structure was erected in 1891 by the Reading Company, originally known as the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad.
See also
