Ela Railroad Bridge

Great Smoky Mountains Railroad Crossing of the Tuckasegee River

This neat 1900 Warren truss bridges not only straddles both banks of the Tuckasegee River, but also figuratively straddles different periods of past, showing the designer's tepid acceptance of then-future. Seldom do bridges have both riveted connections and pinned connections, or eyebar diagonal members and stronger built-up diagonal members. This bridge has these things, as well as decorative portals that pay homage to the more ornate Victorian era of bridges. More than a hundred years later and covered in rust, this old railroad bridge continues to perform its task as it is supposed to.

The bridge is located just off US 19, as the highway makes its way up a hill and around an S-curve. Until 1985 the bridge carried the Murphy Branch (still the name of the line) of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, and the Southern Railroad before that. Prior to the construction of better highways this bridge was apart of the main artery of the Great Smoky Mountains region; most goods and passengers were moved through here. In contrast, the bridge today carries only a tourist railroad, the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad, which takes excursions out of nearby Bryson City along the Tuckasegee River. The bridge is probably not officially called the Ela Railroad Bridge, but for the purpose of identifying it for this site I chose to associate it the nearby community.

As mentioned before, the bridge uses the Warren truss configuration on the main span with a total of six panels, similar in design to the slightly older Bryson City Railroad Bridge over the same river and on the same line. Asides from differences in structural members, connections, and ornamentation the two spans function fundamentally the same, and probably are similar in length.

If one had to choose between categorizing this bridge as being either riveted or pin-connected, the latter choice would probably make the most sense. Per truss, six of the seven most important connections are pinned: front-posts-to-bottom chord, front-posts-to-top chord, and diagonal members-to-bottom chord. The seventh connection, the top chord / inward diagonals connection, utilizes riveted gusset plates only. More than likely, however, the diagonal connections on the bottom chord are only partially pinned: the diagonals that point outward consist of parallel eyebars that are pinned, while the ones that point inward consist of heavier beams that appear to be connected together with the others via rivets in the gusset plate, much like the verticals. These beams, identical to the verticals, are box-shaped, consisting of two "V-laced" pieces of steel (the "zigzagging"). Vertical members that meet diagonals at the top, however, are simple I-beams. In all three instances of their use, they are pinned on one end and riveted on the other. For example, the verticals nearest the front post are riveted at the bottom at the connection with the bottom chord, but pin-connected at the top. The bottom chord, meanwhile, consists of I-beams on the outer panels and eyebars in the middle panels, representing the jumbled nature of this span.

Sheet steel with what appear to be four leaf clover cutouts adorn the bridge portals. The dainty little designs look somewhat out of place on an industrial-looking railroad bridge, but they certainly show the attention that was paid years ago to small details.

This bridge does have a perfectly-intact plaque located on a front post. I did manage to take an adequate shot of it from the group; perhaps someday I will crop it for this site. It identifies the builder as the Edge Moor Bridge Works of Wilmington, DE. From what I can tell, the number of bridges remaining that were built by the company is small. HAER, for example, lists only five, four of which are in the Delaware-Philadelphia region. This of course is a limited selection, and there are many bridges like this one out there that are not inventoried.

Facts

Year built: 1900
Builder: Edge Moor Bridge Works of Wilmington, DE
Route Carried: Great Smoky Mountains Railroad
Crosses: Tuckasegee River
Location: Swain County, NC
Design: Six-panel, riveted and pin-connected Warren through truss with plate girder and timber stringer approaches
Coordinates: 35°26'52.67"N, 83°24'1.39"W

Pictures

L-R: various oblique shots of the bridge, taken from the western shore.

Left: a portal shot, facing east. Center: a deck plate girder approach span. Right: a few timber stringer approach spans.

Left: an oblique shot of a few of the panels, showing the three different lower chord connections. Center: a detail of the decorative portal bracing. Right: a pinned and riveted lower chord connection.

Ela Railroad Bridge