Nostalgia & History > Photo or Drawing of Small Timber Draw Bridge?

In my current book due out this year, "The Fort Wayne & Jackson Railroad Company" the railroad's predecessor had two small drawbridges at Fort Wayne, Indiana. One was over a feeder for the Wabash & Erie Canal and I'll assume the other was too, but I need to do some more research.

Anyway, in 1873, predecessor Fort Wayne Jackson & Saginaw had a mishap in that the drawbridge north of the 4th Street Yards was open and a train went into the feeder canal. Reportedly, trains were supposed to stop before proceeding and the a watchman was to be posted.

The mishap happened at night and no photographs have surfaced even though the little 4-4-0 was still submerged three days later.

Can anyone post or point me to photos of small timber drawbridges? Perhaps they were more common in the Pacific Northwest.

Thanks
Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/15 20:42 by wabash2800.

Not sure what you mean by "small" but there were quite a few timber drawbridges inthe Boston area, a few of which survive today.

Here's a link to one that was replaced in the late 1980s.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2091831

Morning Sun's B&M book has some better photos (I know they're better because I took them :))

Thanks. My subject would have likely been much smaller than that and single track. I am thinking it might have been something along the lines of a Gallows turntable. I don't know if it would have lifted up or turned to the side. I know technically, a drawbridge lifts open, but sometimes laymen lump all bridges that open as drawbridges.

What the two FWJ&S drawbridges at Fort Wayne looked like really attracts my curiosity as I'm thinking they would have been rather primitive. (The locos only weighed 30 tons at max.) The two drawbridges are still listed in 1881 pretty much after the canal was dead, but notes relate that Vanderbilt had bought the canal at that time--perhaps something related to the new Nickel Plate using the canal right-of-way?

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com



Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/15 14:29 by wabash2800.

This is one that carried a street in Australia but I'll bet my railroad bridge looked something like this but maybe just a little beefier.

The image was found at http://www.geocities.ws/stonyck/history.html

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/15 14:30 by wabash2800.

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Here's an interesting small wooden railroad drawbridge I found at:

http://www.abandonedrails.com/McDaniel_to_Ocean_City

Sadly, it's gone.

There are some other photos of it there. This would make a nifty project for a model railroader.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/15 19:15 by wabash2800.

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Have you contacted the Canal Society of Indiana? They might have something. The Canal Society of Ohio has had a few articles on drawbridges with drawings over the years. I will go through my info from them and see what I can find.

This center pivot Howe truss is still standing on the White Pass & Yukon in Carcross, YK.

Like you suggested, it's along the lines of a gallows turntable.

I've got more on this bridge and another I'll send you in a PM.

-John



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/07/15 07:16 by LarryDoyle.

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Anyone know the source for this poster?

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'No ' to source...

But a great subject for: "Caption This"!!!!!

"I told them: 'no bigger than a 2-2-2!!!'


Wes C.

wcamp1472 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 'No ' to source...
>
> But a great subject for: "Caption This"!!!!!
>
> "I told them: 'no bigger than a 2-2-2!!!'
>
>
> Wes C.

It already has the perfect caption, right in the center of the page.

-John

Oops,

I hadn't noticed the fine print!

Wes C.