Cramerton Road Bridge
Lakewood Road Crossing of the South Fork Catawba River
This bridge has been demolished and replaced
Compared to the striking arch bridge just downstream, this 1950 steel stringer bridge is insignificant and uninteresting. The bridge has its merits, however, as well as a few strange design oddities that make it worthy of examination. Its most notable feature is its piers, each of which differs from the next, with the exception of the flared-out piers on the opposing banks. The easternmost pier that is in the water is held up by steel i-beam columns, which were probably used due to some issue with the soil (perhaps it was too unstable or soft, necessitating the driving of the bents down to bedrock). The middle pier is of the 1950s style, but is completely filled in with concrete, like the two flared-out piers. It rests atop a pier from an older bridge, most likely, which was probably a deck truss. The next pier is in a more typical 50s style, with its two square columns and hollow middle. The flared-out piers also use the square 50s style, while resting atop most remains from the previous bridge(s). Finally, beneath the span on the western bank is an old stone abutment which is not used by the "new" bridge. This abutment has a small arch in it, one which I don't see the purpose of, unless it was meant to be an extra outlet for the water in case of a flood. I suppose the builders of the current bridge found it to be too difficult or too expensive to remove.
The bridge has the standard-plan decorative railing found on some of NC's bridges built in the early-to-mid 1950s. This includes the ubiquitous "staircase" blocks on all four ends (for a more detailed description, see the US 117 Northeast Cape Fear River Bridge page). Another interesting feature of this bridge is that it still has its original concrete deck, not covered up by an asphalt pave-over. In fact, the deck is in remarkably good shape, with no apparent patches. Perhaps this is because most traffic crosses into the old mill town of Cramerton at about 35 MPH.
As noted before, it is right next to the Cramerton Railroad Bridge.
Pictures
- Left & Center: Oblique shots of the bridge, taken from the western bank. Right: Looking east across the bridge.
- Left: a stone abutment from an older bridge. Right: the bridge plaque.