Hawthorne Bridge
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hawthorne Bridge | |
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| Official name | Hawthorne Bridge |
| Carries | vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists |
| Crosses | Willamette River |
| Locale | Portland, Oregon |
| Maintained by | Multnomah County |
| Design | truss with a vertical lift span |
| Longest span | 224 ft (68 m) |
| Total length | 1,382 ft (421 m) |
| Width | 72 ft (22 m) |
| Clearance below | 49 ft (15 m) closed, ? open |
| Opening date | December 19th, 1910 |
| Maps and aerial photos | |
The Hawthorne Bridge is a truss bridge with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical lift bridge in operation in the United States[1] and the oldest highway bridge in Portland. It is also the busiest bicycle and transit bridge in Oregon, with over 4,800 cyclists[2] and 750 TriMet buses daily.[3]
The bridge consists of five fixed spans and one 244 ft. (75 m) long vertical lift span. It is 1,382 feet (421 meters) in total length. The 880,000 pound (400,000 kg) counterweights are suspended from the two 165 ft. (50 m) tall towers. While the river is at low level the bridge is 49 feet (15 meters) above the water, causing it to be raised an average of 200 times per month. As of 2001 the average daily traffic is 30,500 vehicles. The bridge was designed by John Waddell, inventor of the vertical lift bridge and also designer of the Steel and Interstate bridges.
The current bridge was built to replace Madison Bridge No. 1 (1891) and Madison Bridge No. 2 (1900), which was destroyed by a fire in 1902. It cost $511,000 to build and was opened on December 19, 1910. [4]
The deck was changed from wood to steel grating in 1945. In 1985 the lift span sheaves, the grooved wheels that guide the counterweight cables, were replaced. The bridge went through a $21 million restoration from 1998-99, which included replacing the steel grated deck and repainting.[5] The original lead-based paint was completely removed and replaced with 3 layers of new paint that is estimated to last 30 years.[6] During this upgrade the sidewalks were widened to 10 feet (3 meters), making it a thoroughfare for bicycle commuters. Due to the replacement of the steel deck during this project, the channels which used to carry the rails for streetcars and interurban trains were also removed. In 2001 the sidewalks were connected to the Eastbank Esplanade. The estimated cost to replace the bridge is $189.3 million. [3]
Hawthorne Boulevard (and thus the bridge) was named after Dr. J.C. Hawthorne, the cofounder of Oregon's first mental hospital and early proponent for the first Morrison Bridge.[7]
The 2003 film The Hunted had a scene set on MAX on the Hawthorne Bridge. Since MAX does not cross the bridge, the movie company connected articulated buses dressed as a MAX train, complete with fake overhead lines and a sprinkler system to simulate rain.[8] [9]
Light-rail (interurban) service did cross the Hawthorne Bridge up until 1956. Reinforcements put in place during the 1999 restoration make it possible that light rail could appear sometime in the future as well.[10]
Contents |
[edit] Gallery
 The bridge at night |
 seen from the west |
 Detail of a span during Bridge Pedal 2006 |
 Panoramic view from south and west |
 Hawthorne Bridge at night |
 From the Eastbank Esplanade. |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Regional Traffic Report. Portland Department of Transportation. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- ^ Bridge bike traffic up in '05. BikePortland.org. Retrieved on 2006-04-09.
- ^ a b Hawthorne Bridge Future Needs. Multnomah County. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- ^ Smith, Dwight A.; Norman, James B.; Dykman, Pieter T. (1989). Historic Highway Bridges of Oregon. Oregon Historical Society Press, 115. ISBN 0-87595-205-4.
- ^ Hawthorne Bridge Rehabilitation. David Evans and Associates, Inc.. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- ^ Hawthorne Bridge Painting. Multnomah County. Retrieved on 2006-11-09.
- ^ Wood, Sharon; Wortman, Ed (2006). The Portland Bridge Book (3rd Edition). Urban Adventure Press, 61-68. ISBN 0-9787365-1-6.
- ^ Don Hamilton (March 9, 2001). Lights, camera, traffic jam: Filming and construction mean more delays. Portland Tribune. Retrieved on 2007-05-14.
- ^ Jennifer Anderson (January 18, 2002). Shhh! Explosions foil quiet attempt by ‘The Hunted’ to tiptoe back into town. Portland Tribune. Retrieved on 2007-05-14.
- ^ Welcome to the Rose City & NorthWestern: Only in Hollywood do trains still cross Portland's Hawthorne Bridge. TrainWeb. Retrieved on 2007-05-14.
[edit] External links
- Multnomah County:Hawthorne Bridge
- Photo of the 1910 construction crew
- Hawthorne Bridge in the Structurae database
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