OFFICIAL NAME:
OTHER DESIGNATION:
Tufa Bridge below Serpentine Drive
LOCATION:
Pittsburgh (Schenley Park)
USGS 7.5" Topo Quad - UTM Coordinates:
Pittsburgh East - Zone 17; 0590 4476
CARRIES:
pedestrians, Lower Panther Hollow Bridle Path
BETWEEN:
--
CROSSES:
-- stream
TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION / DESIGN:
concrete filled arch covered with tufa mineral deposits
LENGTH OF MAIN SPAN:
TOTAL LENGTH (including longest elevated ramp):
HEIGHT OF DECK:
YEAR ERECTED / ENGINEER:
1908, City of Pittsburgh Department of Public Works
George W. Burke, Superintendent of Parks
ADDITIONAL INFO:
These otherwise ordinary reinforced concrete bridges were made special with a facing of tufa. Tufa is a white, porous, cryptocrystalline calcium carbonate which is formed as piled-up mineral deposits formed beneath the water's surface. The most famous source is Mono Lake is California where mineral-rich spring water interacts with the salt water of the lake. The material used in these bridges is from a deposit in Ohio. Close inspection of the material shows a conglomeration of tiny coral-like tubes and straws and nodules.
view page - Tufa Bridge below Panther Hollow Bridge
FIELD CHECKED:
04-Oct-2000
INFO SOURCES:
Kidney "Pittsburgh's Bridges"
