Work on schedule ahead of historic Mount Carbon bridge's relocation

Dec. 7—SAINT CLAIR — Extensive work is underway preparing the site next to the Coal Creek Commerce Center for the relocation of a historic 128-year-old bridge removed earlier this year from Mount Carbon.

Construction crews are working along Route 61, opposite Vito's Coal Fired Pizza & Restaurant.

"Recent work at that location included the construction of a concrete slab and some ancillary work on an existing wall," the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said Tuesday in a news release.

In September, a Schuylkill County Municipal Authority water line along Mill Creek was relocated to make way for the bridge.

PennDOT said the $2.9 million project to relocate the rare bowstring iron truss bridge, which is listed as a National Historic Bridge, is proceeding on schedule.

It is expected to be set in place over Mill Creek by mid-2023. When placed, it will become a footbridge on the Saint Clair section of the Schuylkill River Trail, a 120-mile walkway that will run from Philadelphia to Frackville when finished.

A new journey

A crew from Fabcor Inc., a Lackawanna County company, prepared the bridge for removal from its berth over the Schuylkill River during the summer.

A municipal authority 12-inch water main, which ran across the bridge, was relocated to the riverbed. A PPL utility pole along Mount Carbon Arch Road was also moved to make space for the raising of the 120-foot-long bridge.

On Aug. 25, two cranes from Lanes Cranes in Moosic, Lackawanna County, lifted the 37,000 pound structure and placed it on wooden pylons in a lot next to the Mount Carbon arch.

The intricate maneuver, which required coordination of cranes harnessed to either end of the bridge, took only eight minutes.

Built in 1894, the bridge was in remarkable condition for its age, officials said.

A crew of specialists from Lockhart Iron Works, an Ohio company, spent a week dismantling the bridge piece by piece.

A rare example of late 19th century technology, the bridge's components were held together by hot iron rivets and bolts, also called chords.

Lockhart workers used torches to heat the metal white hot, a method that ensured the components would be preserved intact as historic materials.

It took three days to unhinge iron beams, which were assembled when horse-and-buggy was the main mode of highway transportation.

Dismantling the bridge, it became apparent that its wrought iron was of a stronger grade than had been anticipated, perhaps accounting for its endurance over more than a century.

Doug Lockhart, a bridge restoration specialist, said the Mount Carbon bridge ranked "a 9 out of 10" on a historic preservation scale, with 10 being the highest.

In early September, the components of the bridge were transported to Lockhart's works in Logan, Ohio, for refurbishing.

Witness to history

When the first buggies crossed the Mount Carbon bridge in 1894, Grover Cleveland was president and there were only 44 stars on the American flag.

For 32 years, it served as a connection between Schuylkill Haven and Pottsville.

It was closed when a concrete bridge nearby, which is still in use, was built in 1926. After that, it was used by pedestrians for several decades.

When it was removed and dismantled, the bridge had not been used by vehicles in 96 years.

A plaque containing the bridge's history will be placed nearby after it is relocated to Saint Clair, an official of Schuylkill River Greenways said.

Hikers and cyclists will access the bridge from the Saint Clair part of the trail, which runs through the commerce center.

The trail parallels Route 61 for a short distance, then proceeds along the former Reading Railroad bed north to state game lands in New Castle Twp., just south of Frackville.

Contact the writer: rdevlin@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6007