Thursday, January 5, 2023

1912 GAP Trail/Western Maryland Salisbury Viaduct over Casselman River Valley near Meyersdale, PA

(Bridge HunterHistoric Bridges; HAERSatellite)


"Built 1912, Abandoned 1975. Converted for pedestrian use 1998." [BridgeHunter]

The trail head is at the former WM depot in Meyersdale.

East of here along this trail is the 1871 Bollman Bridge and the Keystone Viaduct.

"Significance: This viaduct across the Casselman River Valley was on the Western Maryland Railway's Connellsville Subdivision, which ran from Cumberland, Maryland, to Connellsville,  Pennsylvania. The 1.900- foot-long structure is one of the Western Maryland Railway's longest viaducts." [HAER-data, this web page includes a history of the Western Maryland Railroad.]

Note that the trestle was built to accommodate a second track.
HAER PA,56-MEYER.V,1--1
GENERAL VIEW OF VIADUCT LOOKING NORTHWEST - Salisbury Junction Viaduct, Spanning Casselman River, State Route 219 & T381, Meyersdale, Somerset County, PA

The taller towers are on the left were it crosses the river.
Street View

Street View, Sep 2019, looking East
[The CSX train is on a former B&O route.]
 
Street View, Aug 2022, looking East
 
Ca. 1914 via HistoricBridges

RailsToTrails via BridgeHunter, Photo by Milo Bateman

paulfeighner Flickr, License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA)

The CSX/B&O route under the viaduct is still active.
Worldwide Railfan Productions posted
CSX passes under the Salisbury Viaduct
A CSX double stack intermodal train heads East under the former Western Maryland Salisbury Viaduct.  
While the Western Maryland Railroad was a superior route in comparison to the B&O with respect to grades and travel time, the Western Maryland lacked a critical second track, ultimately leading to its abandonment. Now part of the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP Trail), this former Western Maryland right of way is 'preserved' as a premier bike bike trail.
 Location: Salisbury, PA
 By: Brandon Fiume 
 Taken on: September 30, 2023
 http://www.brandonfiume.com/photos/details/456

Unlike some viaducts, the depth of the girders over the towers is as deep as the girders between the towers.
Street View, Sep 2019

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted
B & O (Baltimore & Ohio) train near the community of Meyersdale, Somerset County in 1976.
Larry Whyte: There's the Salisbury Viaduct of the Western Maryland Railroad in the background. Today that viaduct carries the Great Allegheny Passage rail trail across the valley of the Casselman River.
Bob Bevec: A couple years ago while visiting friends in Meyersdale, we did an evening walk along the Great Allegheny passage, which the bridge in the background is part of. Formerly part of the railroad, it's now an exceptional part of the trail. Unfortunately, I got about 200 feet onto the bridge and had to turn around. Didn't realize I wasn't made for heights in an open atmosphere until then. But it's still a very neat part of the trail. There's also a very old, very small, unkept cemetery just before this bridge. Found a grave there with the name Meyers. Wondered if it maybe was the founder. - or relativ - of the borough.
Patrick Daerr: Bob Bevec I think it was the graves for the workers that died building that bridge a crane toppled over the bridge during construction.
Loren Pyle shared
Jeffrey Sessa: ESSO, 4-16-1976. Photo by Max Robin.

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