The Charlestown Bridge, officially named the North Washington Street Bridge, is located in Boston and spans the Charles River. As the river's easternmost crossing, the bridge connects the neighborhoods of Charlestown and the North End. Completed in 1900 and given its current official name in 1910,[1] the bridge carries a portion of the Freedom Trail linking to the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill. To the north of the bridge, Route 99 begins and the street becomes New Rutherford Avenue.[2]
The North Washington Street Bridge in 1929, showing both automotive and elevated railway traffic
The first government-sanctioned ferry crossing of the Charles was chartered at this location in the 1630s. It was operated by various individuals until it was given to Harvard College "in perpetuity" in 1640, to support the college financially. In 1640, the Massachusetts General Court granted Harvard College the revenue from the Boston-Charlestown ferry to help support the institution. The Harvard Corporation in its capacity managed the Charlestown ferry from the 1640s until 1785, and after the completion of the Charles River Bridge in 1785.[4]
The first bridge on this site was known as the Charles River Bridge, chartered in 1785 and opened on June 17, 1786. As a condition of chartering the bridge, a sum of £200 was paid annually to Harvard College to compensate for the lost ferry income. The bridge was privately built and operated, with tolls producing profits for the investors during the charter period, after the initial expense was paid off. In 1792, the West Boston Bridge was chartered, connecting West Boston to Cambridge. In compensation, the legislature extended the charter period of the Charles River Bridge by 30 years, but the unpopular double tolls on Sundays were eliminated.[5] Traffic to the bridge was facilitated by the laying out of the Medford Turnpike in 1803.
The current bridge was built in 1900 under chief engineer William Jackson, and was designed to carry the Charlestown Elevated railway in addition to vehicle traffic. However, the railway was demolished in 1975 to make way for its replacement, the MBTAOrange Line's Haymarket North Extension. The new line was rerouted to avoid having to pass directly through the densely populated Charlestown neighborhood. The Haymarket Tunnel, emerging from under both North Station and the Charles River just south of the new Orange Line Community College station, was inaugurated in 1975 as the designated tunnel for Orange Line trains.[6] Because the bridge was originally designed to accommodate an elevated railroad in addition to automobiles, the bridge spans six lanes.
The bridge formerly carried the southernmost stretch of Massachusetts Route 99 to its terminus at the river, but following completion of the Big Dig in the late 2000s, the route's designation was changed to relocate the terminus to Chelsea Street in Charlestown.[citation needed]
Replacement
Construction of the new bridge in 2019
The bridge has been considered structurally deficient since 2003, when the center two lanes were permanently closed. Construction work on a replacement bridge began in the fall of 2018. The design for the new bridge, by architect Miguel Rosales in collaboration with Alfred Benesch & Co., is intended to complement the nearby Zakim Bridge (with which Rosales was also involved). The new bridge is slated to have two vehicular lanes in each direction, a dedicated southbound bus lane, and a protected bicycle lane and sidewalk on each side. During construction, a temporary bridge has been installed to carry pedestrians and three lanes of vehicular traffic.[7][8][9]
The new $180 million Charlestown bridge was expected to be completed in 2023 to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Zakim Bridge, but due to defects discovered on September 29, 2021 in some of the welds/connections of a portion of the installed steel tub girders, the project has been delayed indefinitely. [10][11]
Gallery
Bridge and approaches, with Charlestown in the background
Charlestown Bridge, looking north. The red line on the pavement indicates the Freedom Trail.
^Boston (Mass.) Board of Street Commissioners (1910). Board of Street Commissioners proceedings (Report). Vol. 40. City of Boston Archives. p. 4.
^Hoth, Nathan. "North Washington Street Bridge". historicbridges.org. Historic Bridges. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
^"N Washington Street Bridge Construction Underway; Public Receives Updates at North End Meeting". Charlestown Patriot-Bridge. November 29, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
^Boston (Mass.). Transit Commission; George Glover Crocker (1899). The Ferry, the Charles-River Bridge and the Charlestown Bridge: Historical Statement. Rockwell & Churchill. pp. 3–.
^Bacon's dictionary of Boston by Edwin Monroe Bacon and George Edward Ellis. p. 69.
^Andrew Elder and Jeremy C. Fox (October 21, 2013). Boston's Orange Line. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 8–. ISBN978-1-4671-2047-0.
^"North Washington Street Bridge Project Approved". NorthEndWaterfront.com. March 20, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
^"Mayor's Column: How We're Working to Replace the Charlestown Bridge". Charlestown, MA Patch. Patch Media. December 7, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
^Baumann, Edward T. (November 2, 2018). "The gentler of the two". Roads & Bridges. Scranton Gillette Communications. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
^"Opening of New North Washington Street/Charlestown Bridge Expected to Coincide With Zakim Bridge's 20th Anniversary – Beacon Hill Times". beaconhilltimes.com. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
^. NBC Boston https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/it-is-a-bummer-stalled-work-on-charlestown-bridge-frustrates-bostonians/2772995/. Retrieved 5 October 2022. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
External links
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Not to be confused with Charlestown High Bridge North Washington Street Bridge redirects here For the bridge in DeWitt Arkansas see North Washington Street Bridge DeWitt The Charlestown Bridge officially named the North Washington Street Bridge is located in Boston and spans the Charles River As the river s easternmost crossing the bridge connects the neighborhoods of Charlestown and the North End Completed in 1900 and given its current official name in 1910 1 the bridge carries a portion of the Freedom Trail linking to the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill To the north of the bridge Route 99 begins and the street becomes New Rutherford Avenue 2 Charlestown BridgeCharlestown Bridge in 2009Coordinates42 22 08 N 71 03 36 W 42 36889 N 71 06000 W 42 36889 71 06000 Coordinates 42 22 08 N 71 03 36 W 42 36889 N 71 06000 W 42 36889 71 06000CarriesNorth Washington StreetCrossesCharles RiverLocaleBoston MassachusettsOfficial nameNorth Washington Street BridgeMaintained byCity of BostonCharacteristicsDesignPlate girder bridge approaches with truss swing spanTotal length1 089 ft 332 m Width66 ft 20 m No of spansOne 241 2 ft 73 5 m HistoryDesignerWilliam JacksonConstruction start1898 2018Construction end1900 2023 planned Opened1900 2023 planned ReplacesCharles River Bridge 1786 StatisticsDaily traffic38 400 cars day 2010 LocationReplacement of the bridge started in fall 2018 and is expected to be completed in 2023 3 Contents 1 History 2 Replacement 3 Gallery 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory Edit The Charlestown Bridge under construction in 1899 The North Washington Street Bridge in 1929 showing both automotive and elevated railway traffic The first government sanctioned ferry crossing of the Charles was chartered at this location in the 1630s It was operated by various individuals until it was given to Harvard College in perpetuity in 1640 to support the college financially In 1640 the Massachusetts General Court granted Harvard College the revenue from the Boston Charlestown ferry to help support the institution The Harvard Corporation in its capacity managed the Charlestown ferry from the 1640s until 1785 and after the completion of the Charles River Bridge in 1785 4 The first bridge on this site was known as the Charles River Bridge chartered in 1785 and opened on June 17 1786 As a condition of chartering the bridge a sum of 200 was paid annually to Harvard College to compensate for the lost ferry income The bridge was privately built and operated with tolls producing profits for the investors during the charter period after the initial expense was paid off In 1792 the West Boston Bridge was chartered connecting West Boston to Cambridge In compensation the legislature extended the charter period of the Charles River Bridge by 30 years but the unpopular double tolls on Sundays were eliminated 5 Traffic to the bridge was facilitated by the laying out of the Medford Turnpike in 1803 When the Warren Bridge was chartered in 1828 in a location extremely close to the Charles River Bridge the investors filed a lawsuit which eventually reached the United States Supreme Court as Charles River Bridge v Warren Bridge The current bridge was built in 1900 under chief engineer William Jackson and was designed to carry the Charlestown Elevated railway in addition to vehicle traffic However the railway was demolished in 1975 to make way for its replacement the MBTA Orange Line s Haymarket North Extension The new line was rerouted to avoid having to pass directly through the densely populated Charlestown neighborhood The Haymarket Tunnel emerging from under both North Station and the Charles River just south of the new Orange Line Community College station was inaugurated in 1975 as the designated tunnel for Orange Line trains 6 Because the bridge was originally designed to accommodate an elevated railroad in addition to automobiles the bridge spans six lanes The bridge formerly carried the southernmost stretch of Massachusetts Route 99 to its terminus at the river but following completion of the Big Dig in the late 2000s the route s designation was changed to relocate the terminus to Chelsea Street in Charlestown citation needed Replacement Edit Construction of the new bridge in 2019 The bridge has been considered structurally deficient since 2003 when the center two lanes were permanently closed Construction work on a replacement bridge began in the fall of 2018 The design for the new bridge by architect Miguel Rosales in collaboration with Alfred Benesch amp Co is intended to complement the nearby Zakim Bridge with which Rosales was also involved The new bridge is slated to have two vehicular lanes in each direction a dedicated southbound bus lane and a protected bicycle lane and sidewalk on each side During construction a temporary bridge has been installed to carry pedestrians and three lanes of vehicular traffic 7 8 9 The new 180 million Charlestown bridge was expected to be completed in 2023 to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Zakim Bridge but due to defects discovered on September 29 2021 in some of the welds connections of a portion of the installed steel tub girders the project has been delayed indefinitely 10 11 Gallery Edit Bridge and approaches with Charlestown in the background Charlestown Bridge looking north The red line on the pavement indicates the Freedom Trail View towards downtown Boston and the Custom House Tower Bridge approaches looking into downtown Boston Bus 111 on the bridgeSee also EditList of crossings of the Charles RiverReferences Edit Boston Mass Board of Street Commissioners 1910 Board of Street Commissioners proceedings Report Vol 40 City of Boston Archives p 4 Hoth Nathan North Washington Street Bridge historicbridges org Historic Bridges Retrieved March 13 2019 N Washington Street Bridge Construction Underway Public Receives Updates at North End Meeting Charlestown Patriot Bridge November 29 2018 Retrieved April 13 2019 Boston Mass Transit Commission George Glover Crocker 1899 The Ferry the Charles River Bridge and the Charlestown Bridge Historical Statement Rockwell amp Churchill pp 3 Bacon s dictionary of Boston by Edwin Monroe Bacon and George Edward Ellis p 69 Andrew Elder and Jeremy C Fox October 21 2013 Boston s Orange Line Arcadia Publishing pp 8 ISBN 978 1 4671 2047 0 North Washington Street Bridge Project Approved NorthEndWaterfront com March 20 2018 Retrieved April 13 2019 Mayor s Column How We re Working to Replace the Charlestown Bridge Charlestown MA Patch Patch Media December 7 2018 Retrieved April 13 2019 Baumann Edward T November 2 2018 The gentler of the two Roads amp Bridges Scranton Gillette Communications Retrieved April 13 2019 Opening of New North Washington Street Charlestown Bridge Expected to Coincide With Zakim Bridge s 20th Anniversary Beacon Hill Times beaconhilltimes com Retrieved 2020 02 14 NBC Boston https www nbcboston com news local it is a bummer stalled work on charlestown bridge frustrates bostonians 2772995 Retrieved 5 October 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a Missing or empty title help External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charlestown bridge Boston North Washington Street Bridge at Structurae Various photos 1899 1929 Article with early 1800s photo Portals Engineering Transport Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Charlestown Bridge amp oldid 1114276298, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
