Area less than one acre NRHP Reference # 99001189 Opened 1916 Added to NRHP 24 September 1999 | Built 1916 (1916) Removed from NRHP July 14, 2015 Body of water Sandy River | |
 | ||
Location S of US 2 over Sandy River, New Sharon, Maine Architectural style Pennsylvania Thru Truss | ||
Goodbye new sharon bridge
The New Sharon Bridge was a single-span iron Pennsylvania truss that carried U.S. Route 2 (US 2) over the Sandy River in New Sharon, Maine. The bridge was built in 1916, closed to traffic in the 1990s, and was demolished on February 27, 2014. It had been listed on the National Register of Historic Places as one of only three pin-connected Pennsylvania truss bridges in the state.
Contents
Description and history
The bridge was oriented roughly northwest to southeast, crossing the Sandy River adjacent to the center of New Sharon. It was a single-span, pin-connected, Pennsylvania truss, one of only three such bridges built in the state. The bridge was manufactured by the Groton Bridge Co. and erected in 1916 on concrete abutments with ashlar granite wingwalls. The bridge was 268 feet (82 m) long and had a sidewalk cantilevered over its upstream side. It had a steel grid deck giving a roadway 18.5 feet (5.6 m) in width.
When the current alignment of US 2 was built in 1959, a modern span was built downstream to carry it, and the road this bridge carried was designated Main Street. The bridge was closed by the state in the 1990s because of its deteriorating condition. Further cracking in the abutments over time led to the decision in 2013 to demolish it. The bridge was brought down on February 27, 2014. Explosive charges meant to accomplish the feat failed to do so, apparently because the aging concrete of the abutments absorbed the force of the blast. Large jackhammers were brought in to finish the job.