Stone Bridge (Johnstown, Pennsylvania)

Stone Bridge
Stone Bridge from the overlook
Coordinates40°19′57″N 78°55′30″W / 40.3325°N 78.9249°W / 40.3325; -78.9249 (Stone Bridge (Johnstown, Pennsylvania))
Carriesrailroad traffic
CrossesConemaugh River
LocaleJohnstown, Pennsylvania, USA
Official nameConemaugh River Viaduct
Characteristics
Designarch bridge
MaterialStone
Total length428 feet (130 m)
Widthfour tracks
Longest span58 feet (18 m)
No. of spans7
Piers in water4
History
Construction start1887
Construction end1888
Location
Map

The Stone Bridge spans the Conemaugh River in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The bridge is a seven-arch stone railroad bridge located on the Norfolk Southern Railway's Pittsburgh Line, built by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1887–88. Its upstream face was reinforced with concrete in 1929.[1]

This bridge survived the Johnstown Flood of 1889, but the bridge blocked debris across the river. These materials, including barbed wire, subsequently caught fire and created an inferno covering 30 acres (120,000 m2). Scores of people were trapped and killed. The bridge is visible from Point Park in downtown Johnstown.

Stone Bridge c. 1905
  1. ^ Spivey, Justin M. (April 2001). "Pennsylvania Railroad, Conemaugh River Viaduct" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. p. 3. Retrieved January 29, 2014.