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Harvard Bridge
Harvard Bridge, also known locally as the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge and "Mass. Ave." Bridge, is a steel haunched girder bridge carrying Massachusetts Avenue (Route 2A) over the Charles River and connecting Back Bay, Boston with Cambridge, Massachusetts. At 2,164.8 feet (387.72 sm; 659.82 m), it is the longest bridge over the Charles River.
After years of disagreement between the cities of Boston and Cambridge, the bridge was built jointly by the two cities between 1887 and 1891. It is named for John Harvard, the founder of Harvard University. Originally equipped with a central swing span, it was revised several times over the years until its superstructure was completely replaced in the late 1980s due to unacceptable vibration and the collapse of a similar bridge in Connecticut.
The bridge is known locally for being marked off in the idiosyncratic unit of length called the smoot.
In 1874, the Massachusetts Legislature authorized construction of a bridge between Boston and Cambridge, and in 1882 follow-up legislation set out its location.
The bridge was to have a draw with an opening of at least 38 feet (12 m; 6.8 sm). Boston interests opposed the bridge, mainly because it did not provide for an overhead crossing of the Grand Junction Branch of the Boston and Albany Railroad. Further legislation in 1885 changed the draw to a clear opening of at least 36 feet (11 m; 6.4 sm) and no more, until the other bridges below the proposed location were required to have a larger opening. There was still no substantive progress until 1887, when Cambridge petitioned the Legislature to compel Boston to proceed; the resulting act required each city pay half the cost, and allowed Boston to raise up to $250,000 (US$8,960,000 with inflation) for this purpose, in excess of its debt limit. This implied an estimated cost of US$500,000 (US$17,900,000 with inflation) for the bridge.
The Legislature provided for a bridge commission, to consist of the mayors of Boston and Cambridge plus a third commissioner to be appointed by the mayors. The mayors of Boston and Cambridge, Hugh O'Brien and William E. Russell, appointed Leander Greeley of Cambridge as the third commissioner, though this appointment changed over time.
The commission's 1892 report claimed:
The effect that the bridge will have upon both cities is obvious. The low land and marshes on the Cambridge side, formerly almost valueless, have been filled in and have become valuable; and Cambridge is now connected with the choicest residential portions of Boston. The residents of the Back Bay, South End, Roxbury, and other southern sections of Boston are now connected directly, by way of West Chester park and the bridge, with Cambridge, Belmont, Arlington, and adjacent towns; and this thoroughfare in Boston, it is believed, will ultimately be the central one of the city.
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Harvard Bridge
Harvard Bridge, also known locally as the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge and "Mass. Ave." Bridge, is a steel haunched girder bridge carrying Massachusetts Avenue (Route 2A) over the Charles River and connecting Back Bay, Boston with Cambridge, Massachusetts. At 2,164.8 feet (387.72 sm; 659.82 m), it is the longest bridge over the Charles River.
After years of disagreement between the cities of Boston and Cambridge, the bridge was built jointly by the two cities between 1887 and 1891. It is named for John Harvard, the founder of Harvard University. Originally equipped with a central swing span, it was revised several times over the years until its superstructure was completely replaced in the late 1980s due to unacceptable vibration and the collapse of a similar bridge in Connecticut.
The bridge is known locally for being marked off in the idiosyncratic unit of length called the smoot.
In 1874, the Massachusetts Legislature authorized construction of a bridge between Boston and Cambridge, and in 1882 follow-up legislation set out its location.
The bridge was to have a draw with an opening of at least 38 feet (12 m; 6.8 sm). Boston interests opposed the bridge, mainly because it did not provide for an overhead crossing of the Grand Junction Branch of the Boston and Albany Railroad. Further legislation in 1885 changed the draw to a clear opening of at least 36 feet (11 m; 6.4 sm) and no more, until the other bridges below the proposed location were required to have a larger opening. There was still no substantive progress until 1887, when Cambridge petitioned the Legislature to compel Boston to proceed; the resulting act required each city pay half the cost, and allowed Boston to raise up to $250,000 (US$8,960,000 with inflation) for this purpose, in excess of its debt limit. This implied an estimated cost of US$500,000 (US$17,900,000 with inflation) for the bridge.
The Legislature provided for a bridge commission, to consist of the mayors of Boston and Cambridge plus a third commissioner to be appointed by the mayors. The mayors of Boston and Cambridge, Hugh O'Brien and William E. Russell, appointed Leander Greeley of Cambridge as the third commissioner, though this appointment changed over time.
The commission's 1892 report claimed:
The effect that the bridge will have upon both cities is obvious. The low land and marshes on the Cambridge side, formerly almost valueless, have been filled in and have become valuable; and Cambridge is now connected with the choicest residential portions of Boston. The residents of the Back Bay, South End, Roxbury, and other southern sections of Boston are now connected directly, by way of West Chester park and the bridge, with Cambridge, Belmont, Arlington, and adjacent towns; and this thoroughfare in Boston, it is believed, will ultimately be the central one of the city.