Niagara Gorge - Honeymoon Bridge (Falls View Bridge) - Abutments 2

This is a close-up of what is left of the Honeymoon Bridge (Falls View Bridge). It was built in 1897-1898 by the Pencoyd Bridge Company of Philadelphia under the direction of Engineer, R.S. Buck.

January 23rd 1938, a sudden wind storm on Lake Erie sent a deluge of ice down river and over the Falls. Within twelve hours the river below the Falls was jammed with ice of such enormous proportions that the ice pressure pushing against the bridge abutments and the hinge supports of the arch caused severe structural damage. It was only a matter of time until the bridge would collapse.

The bridge remained intact for several days, drawing thousands of people who came to wait for the end of the bridge to come. The end of the Upper Steel Arch Bridge (Honeymoon Bridge) came at 4:20 p.m. on January 27th 1938, when the span broke free and fell into the gorge onto the ice on the river below. The ice had pushed the bridge away from its abutment on the American side causing the bridge to be pulled of its abutment on the Canadian shore.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• bridge
• niagara
• falls
• collapse
• Honeymoon
• Bridge
• Falls
• View
• Waterfall