Posted by Bill Caywood on January 10, 2011 
It has been said there is a prototype for just about everything, but I think that this bridge probably should not be duplicated. What has been done here is lots of stone work for an older bridge has been reused, but the roadbed and it's track has been changed from the first alignment. The stone pier nearest the camera was reused but a concrete cap has been added and the bridge supports are over to the left. The second pier has no concrete cap and it's supports are also off to the left. If one observes closely this pier may have developed movement under the loads imposed upon it. Notice the poured concrete columns that line up to either side of this pier, and the steel structure that runs from the girders to the columns. Also note the stone retaining embankment on the far side of the Beaver River. The location of the stone work did not work will with the new track alignment and or the girder lengths so concrete support columns were added for support. Logical reasoning for all of this work would suggest that sharp curves on the first track alignment were causing problems and the radius of the curves leading to the bridge were increased as much as possible with out building totally new piers.
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