Lost Point Bridges over Allegheny River in Pittsburgh, PA

1875-1907: (BrooklineConnection)

1915-1970: (Archived Bridge Hunter; HAER; pghbridges; Satellite) Official name: North Side Point Bridge

These notes focus on the north bridges. The south bridges have their own notes, which also has general photos of the point that include these bridges. The Point is an overview of the point area.

Bridges Now and Then posted
The closed Manchester Bridge, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, seen from the southeast, April, 1970. (Charles W. Shane)
Dennis DeBruler: HAER has more photos of this bridge: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/pa0064/

Significance: The Manchester Bridge replaced the old wooden Union Bridge, the first bridge erected at the Point and demolished in 1907. Both bridges spanned the Allegheny, connecting the Point of Pittsburgh to its North Side. The superstructure consisted of two Pennsylvania through-truss spans, each 531 feet long, with a clearance of 70 feet above harbor pool level. The designs of the bridge and the finely crafted, ornamental ironwork of the portals were executed under the direction of the Pittsburgh Department of Public Works.

[HAER_data]

Because the link is broke, I'm using the index for the Union Bridge.

Archived Bridge Hunter Index

I finally (Oct 2024) came across a photo that has the Union Bridge.

𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻: 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗻𝘀𝘆𝗹𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗮 posted
Late 1800s • Pittsburgh PA!

Larry Bodnar: Correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember Rick Sebak saying on one of his PBS Pittsburgh shows that the water was so low in the summer that you could walk across the Allegheny to the North Side. All navigations on the river were halted during those months.

Rick Arturo: Larry Bodnar my grandfather who was born in 1910, said that before the dams were built, the Allegheny would be so low during droughts, he would often walk across the river to Sharpsburg.

Diane Godleski: Wow! I can’t believe how much water is in this picture! It was so scary to see that much water!

And then I came across photos of the bridge itself.

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted

Union Bridge located near "The Point" in Pittsburgh. The Union Bridge was Pittsburgh's last wooden constructed bridge, built in 1874 and later demolished in 1907 due to fire damage and being declared a hazard to navigation by the Secretary of War.

(Photo from Joe Lillion via https://www.facebook.com/groups/132768683480072/)

Bridges Now and Then shared

Jackson-Township historical preservation also posted with the same comment.

 

BrooklineConnection
"The interior of the Union Bridge, showing the roadbed, trolley tracks and walkway on each side."

The rest of these notes are about the Manchester Bridge.

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted

The Manchester Bridge opened in 1915 and was the second bridge that connected the Point with the North Side of Pittsburgh. It was the successor to the wooden, covered Union Bridge (1874-1907). The Manchester Bridge was in use until 1969, when it was replaced by the Fort Duquesne Bridge. The bridge was demolished in 1970 as one of the final acts in the completion of the Point State Park project.

(Photo from Robert Wood via https://www.facebook.com/groups/132768683480072/)

HAER PA,2-PITBU,59--17
17. Charles W, Shane, Photographer, April 1970. VIEW FROM THE SOUTHEAST. - North Side Point Bridge, Spanning Allegheny River at Point of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA

I believe the building on the right side of this photo was the Three Rivers Stadium.

HAER PA,2-PITBU,59--24
24. Charles W. Shane, Photographer, April 1970. VIEW FROM THE SOUTHEAST. - North Side Point Bridge, Spanning Allegheny River at Point of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA

Significance: The Manchester Bridge replaced the old wooden Union Bridge, the first bridge erected at the Point and demolished in 1907. Both bridges spanned the Allegheny, connecting the Point of Pittsburgh to its North Side. The superstructure consisted of two Pennsylvania through-truss spans, each 531 feet long, with a clearance of 70 feet above harbor pool level. The designs of the bridge and the finely crafted, ornamental ironwork of the portals were executed under the direction of the Pittsburgh Department of Public Works. [HAER-data]

"TOTAL LENGTH (including longest elevated ramp): 2840 ft (Point approach, 913 ft; river spans, 1062 ft total; Allegheny approach, 865 ft)" [pghbridges]

pitt, cropped, Public Domain

 

picryl

route22ny via pinterest
"The Manchester Bridge in Pittsburgh.  It opened in 1915 and was the second bridge that connected the Point with the North Side of Pittsburgh. It replaced the wooden, covered Union Bridge (1874-1907). The Manchester Bridge was in use until 1969 (when it was replaced by the Fort Duquesne Bridge) and was demolished in 1970 as one of the final acts in the completion of the Point State Park project.  Undated photo, and caption info, from Jackson-Township Historical Preservation."

 

A photo that also has the Fort Duquesne Bridge that replaced this one as part of the project to create Point State Park and better roads in the area.

twitter

The bridge had pin-connected trusses. [scrolller and HAER_19]

ArtsAndCulture
"Entrances to the new bridge incorporated designs by Charles Keck representing the historical figures of Guyasuta, Christopher Gist, Joe Magarac and Jan Volkanik."

BrooklineConnection, this webpage has a lot of photos of the bridge including the demolition.
"The Manchester Bridge was known for its ornamental relief sculptures adorning both portals."

 

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted
River wall construction taking place at the Point in Downtown Pittsburgh in 1954. Prior to Renaissance I, the Point in Pittsburgh was in a state of complete disrepair. Litter, debris, unused freight yards, and vacant buildings polluted the “heart” of Pittsburgh and represented the last vestiges of the industrial revolution and steel boom. In Pittsburgh, Renaissance I was a cultural revolution begun by prominent industrialists, most notably, Richard Mellon. The Point became the focus of this urban planning project. The river wall construction was most likely an aspect of clearing the twenty-three acres on the western end of the Golden Triangle to make room for Point State Park and the fountain complex that now resides there.
(Photo from https://historicpittsburgh.org/)

The north abutment was preserved because the original plan was to mount the portal sculptures on it. Instead, a separate display was built for the sculptures that were on the southern portal. The sculptures that were on the northern portal have yet to be made public. [PittsburghOrbit, this web page has detailed photos of the sculptures.]  Historic Bridges took a lot of photos of this display.

Street View, Jun 2022

Abner87, Jan 2020, cropped

The bridge abutment became a Fred "Mister Rogers" Memorial.

20220817 1217

Digitally Zoomed

These are the sculptures that were on the northern portal.

BrooklineConnection
It features "Joe Magarac, the mythical steelworker, and Jan Volkanik, hero of coal miners."

15 decorations that were on the bridge are now displayed as decorations on the Landmarks Preservation Resource Center. [phlf via NextPittsburgh]

Street View, Aug 2017

Construction photos:

DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh posted
📸: Heinz History Center

pitt, Public Domain

pitt, cropped, Public Domain
"A view of construction on the north approach of the North Side Point Bridge [Manchester Bridge]. The image specifically shows workers and a crane building the south wall at the Pittsburgh Junction Railroad under grade crossing."

HistoricPittsburgh, cropped, Public Domain
"A view of men working on the southwest corner of span no. 1 during construction of the North Side Point Bridge. The bridge was completed in 1914 and demolished in 1970. The Western Pennsylvania Exposition Building is visible in the background."