Sewickley Bridge 1911-1979 - HAER PA-53 - Bridges and Tunnels of Allegheny County and Pittsburgh, PA

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Historic American Engineering Record
Sewickley Bridge
HAER No. PA-53

Spanning the Ohio River in the vicinity of Sewickley Borough
Allegheny County
Pennsylvania

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SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 58)

FOOTNOTES

1. Eleanore W. George, "Sewickleyana," Sewickley Centennial (Sewickley Centennial Committee, 1940), pp. 5-8.

2. Ibid., Front sheet to "Sewickleyana".

3. Interview with Mrs. B. G. Shields, President, Sewickley Historical Society, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 1 December 1977.

4. "Story of the Bridge," Souvenir Program Sewickley-Coraopolis Bridge Celebration, (Sewickley: Sewickley-Coraopolis Bridge Celebration Committee, September 1911), p. 15.

5. Stephen C. Foster, Famous composer of folk music.

6. "Story of the Bridge", Souvenir Program, pp. 21, 25.

7. Ibid., pp. 29-54.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 59)

8. Court of Quarter Sessions of Allegheny County, Petition of the residents of the Borough, Sewickley and Moon Township to have bridge erected over the Ohio at Sewickley, 1906.

9. Ibid., Attachment to the petition.

10. "The New Bridge", Souvenir Program Sewickley-Coraopolis Bridge Celebration, (Sewickley: Sewickley-Coraopolis Bridge Celebration Committee, September 1911), p. 57.

11. Ibid.

12. Ibid., p. 58.

13. Ibid.

14. A. W. Buel, "The Sewickley Cantilever Bridge Over the Ohio River," American Society of Civil Engineers Transactions, Vol. LXXVI, No. 1255, (New York: American Society of Civil Engineers, December 1913), pp. 585, 587.

15. Ibid., p. 587 (See Figure 2).

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No PA-53
(Page 60)

16. Ibid., p. 590.

17. Ibid., pp. 590 & 591.

18. Richardson, Gordon and Associates, In-Depth Inspection Report L R. 652 SPUR Sewickley Bridge over the Ohio River, February 1977, Appendix E.

19. A. W. Buel, "The Sewickley River," ASCE Transactions, p. 586.

20. Sewickley Herald, 12 December 1908, p. 4.

21. A. W. Buel, "The Sewickley . . . River," ASCE Transactions, p. 588 and p. 589.

22. Ibid., p. 592.

23. Ibid.

24. Ibid., p. 593.

25. Ibid., p. 594.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No PA-53
(Page 61)

26. Ibid., p. 597.

27. Ibid., p. 600 (See Table).

28. Ibid., p. 601.

29. Ibid., p. 598.

30. Ibid., p. 592.

31. Ibid., p. 607.

32. Ibid., p. 593.

33. Ibid., p. 598.

34. Ibid., p. 594

35. Ibid., p. 597.

36. Michael Baker, Jr., Inc., Eyebar Investigation, Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge, July 1976.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No PA-53
(Page 62)

37. Green Engineering Company, In-Depth Inspection Report Rochester-Monaca Bridge, October 1969.

38. Richardson, Gordon and Associates, In-Depth . . .Ohio River, February 1977, Letter of Transmittal, p. 2.

39. Eleanore W. George, "Sewickleyana," p. 76.

40. Richardson, Gordon and Associates, In-Depth . . .Ohio River, February 1977, pp. 13-26.

41. Ibid., Appendix E.

42. Carnegie Mellon University, Graduate School of Urban and Public Affairs, An Assessment of the Bridge Crisis in Allegheny County, Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon University Press, May 1977, Chapter 7.

43. Ibid., pp. 101 and 102 (See Table).

44. Pennsylvania Economy League Inc., The Sewickley Bridge A Critical Link, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Economy League Inc., October 1977.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 63)

45. Richardson, Gordon and Associates, Preliminary Design Report Sewickley Bridge Over the Ohio River Allegheny County, 5 July 1977.

46. Gloria G. Berry, Reflections of the Sewickley Bridge, (Sewickley: The Committee to Save the Sewickley Bridge, 1977), Chronology.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 64)

APPENDIX A

SIMILAR STRUCTURES

Figures 1 and 2
Ambridge-Alliquippa Bridge

Figures 3 and 4
Rochester-Monaca Bridge

Figures 5 and 6
Bellaire Bridge

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 65)

Figure 1
Pictorial View of Ambridge-Alliquippa Highway Bridge
(Source Unknown)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 66)

Figure 2
Structure Elevation of Ambridge-Alliquippa Highway Bridge

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 67)

Figure 3
Pictorial View of Rochester-Monaca Highway Bridge
(Source Unknown)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 68)

Figure 5
Structure Elevation of Rochester-Monaca Highway Bridge

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 69)

Figure 6
Elevation of Bellaire Highway Bridge

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 70)

Figure 5 (sic)
Pictorial View of Bellaire Highway Bridge
(Courtesy Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, 12/22/77.)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 71)

APPENDIX B
INSPECTION REPORT PHOTOGRAPHS

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 72)

[PHOTOS]

Span 1, West Truss, bottom chord, p.p. L6.
Look south. Photo A7.

Span 3, West Truss, bottom chord, p.p. L1.
Look north. Photo D8.

Span 8, West Truss, bottom chord, p.p. L7.
Look north. Photo B7.

Span 3, north end strut jammed into wing plates of east main shoe on Pier 1.
Look south. Photo D10.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 73)

[PHOTOS]

West most bottom flange angle of the bottom chord, east russ Span 5 p.p L31-L32. Photo C13.

Bottom flange east angle west most flange of the bottom chord, east truss, north of p.p. L12. Photo L12.

Bottom flanges inside angles for the bottom chord, east truss, north of p.p. L32. Photo K12.

Bottom chord inside surfaces of the west web, east truss, south of p.p. L15. Photo G20.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 74)

[PHOTOS]

Top lacing bottom chord, east truss between p.p. L13-L14. Photo K1.

Top lacing bottom chord, east truss between p.p. L30-L31 (note separation in lacing). Photo C17.

Bottom lacing connection, bottom chord, east truss between p.p. L31-L32. Photo C15.

Top west flange bottom chord, east truss between p.p. L18-L19 (note packout between...)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 75)

[PHOTOS]

East truss, p.p. L14 north side, west web of post (see J10). Look south. Photo J8.

East truss, p.p. L17 south side, post angle at web web. Look north. Photo J18.

East truss bottom chord at p.p. L17 (note debris and corrosion). Photo E3.

West truss at p.p. L43 west web of vertical (note hole in web). Photo L12.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 76)

[PHOTOS]

East truss, p.p. L22 south side, diagonal eyebar marked "d", thickness = 1/2". Look down and north. Photo F1.

East truss, p.p. L22, look up and south from "float". Head "6" = 1/2" thickness. Photo F2.

East truss, p.p. L24 south side, east end of joint, packout at post and diagonal webs. Photo F3.

East truss, p.p. L24, look up and south at knife-edged head of eyebar "C". Photo F11.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 77)

[PHOTOS]

North side of Floorbeam FB31 connection to east truss Span 5. Photo C12.

Bottom flange of Floorbeam FB7 at connection to east truss (typical condition). Photo G1.

South side of Floorbeam FB30, look up at stringer seat, web loss of 5/16". Photo D7.

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 78)

APPENDIX C
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR RECORD

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 79)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR RECORD

DATE - - - DESCRIPTION - - - CONTRACTOR - - - COST

(ALLEGHENY COUNTY)

1943 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - $801.33
1944 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 2,347.22
1945 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 967.93
1946 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 1,176.46
1946 - - - Cleaning & Painting - - - Aliquippa Painting Co. - - - 20,500.00
1947 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 373.76
1947 - - - Traffic Signals - - - Martin and Maverset - - - 1,750.00
1948 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 831.57
1948 - - - Resurfacing & Structural Repairs - - - Harrison Const. Co. - - - 124,700.00
1949 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 734.20
1950 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 5,570.75
1951 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 504.70
1952 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 10,321.55
1953 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 1,141.70
1953 - - - Materials Contracts - - - County - - - 3,306.31
1953 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 2,601.42
1954 - - - Cleaning & Painting - - - McGinity & Hathaway - - - 30,995.00
1954 - - - Material Contracts Requ. #5627 - - - County - - - 2,522.48
1955 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 1,935.97
1956 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 3,831.60
1957 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 5,133.58
1958 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 6,071.24
1959 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 3,943.23
1960 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 5,480.09
1961 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 4,786.12
1962 - - - Maintenance - - - County - - - 1,492,35

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
HAER No. PA-53
(Page 80)

SEWICKLEY BRIDGE
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR RECORD

DATE - - - DESCRIPTION - - - CONTRACTOR - - - COST
(PENN DOT)

1964 - - - Painting Group 11-A31 - - - City Painting Co. - - - $3,700.00

1965 - - - Painting Group 11-A35 - - - George Kazel Painting Inc. - - - 125,000.00

1972 - - - Painting Group 11-72-2 - - - Stuart Painting Co. - - - 107,500.00
1972 - - - Work Order - - - Stuart Painting Co. - - - 126,678.00
1974 - - - Sidewalk Removal "Emergency'' - - - Mosites Const. Co. - - - 61,700.00
1977 - - - Emergency Repairs - - - American Bridge Co. - - - 250,000.00

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Page created: 18-Feb-2009
Last modified: 18-Feb-2009

HAER Text: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, February 1978
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