Shocks Mills Bridge

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Shocks Mills Bridge
Carries	Norfolk Southern Railway
Crosses	Susquehanna River
Locale	Wago Junction, Pennsylvania and Marietta, Pennsylvania
Design	brick arch; replacement center sections concrete and steel
Total length	2209 feet
Opening date	January 1, 1905
Toll	none

Shocks Mills Bridge carries tracks of the Norfolk Southern Railway (formerly the Atglen and Susquehanna Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad) over the Susquehanna River between Marietta, Pennsylvania and Wago Junction, Pennsylvania.

[edit] Construction

During the early 20th century, the PRR constructed what it referred to as its "Low-Grade Lines", branches constructed with a minimal grade to divert freight traffic from its congested and steeper main lines. One of these new lines was the Atglen and Susquehanna Branch, which left the Main Line at Parkesburg to cut cross-country to the Susquehanna River, followed the east bank of the river to Marietta, crossed the river and ran along the west bank to Wago Junction, where it met the Northern Central Railway. The line from Marietta to Wago Junction was chartered as the York Haven and Rowenna Railroad, and much of the construction, including the crossing of the Susquehanna at Shocks Mills, was done by H.S. Kerbaugh, a major PRR contractor. The bridge was first opened on January 1, 1905, as a twenty-eight span brick arch.^[1]

[edit] Collapse and rebuilding

The bridge was closed during the flooding caused by Hurricane Agnes in late June of 1972. After the flooding had begun to abate, subsidence was noticed at the center of the bridge on June 27, 1972. On July 2, 1972, the six center spans collapsed into the river. The collapse of the bridge crippled the Penn Central Railroad, removing 75% of its capacity.^[2] With Federal aid, the bridge was rebuilt with nine concrete piers supporting steel girders replacing the destroyed center section. ^[3]