Hares Hill Road Bridge facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hares Hill Road Bridgeover French Creek |
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Looking upstream (northwest)
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| Carries | Single lane of SR 1045 in Chester County |
| Crosses | French Creek |
| Locale | Kimberton, Pennsylvania, and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania |
| Official name | SR 1045 Hares Hill Bridge |
| Other name(s) | Silver Bridge |
| Maintained by | PennDOT |
| ID number | 15104500201201 |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | wrought iron through lattice girder |
| Total length | 103 ft 4 in (31.50 m) |
| Width | 14 ft (4.3 m) |
| History | |
| Opened | 1869 |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | average 4,895 |
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Hare's Hill Road Bridge
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 Location in Pennsylvania
Location in the United States
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| Nearest city | Phoenixville, Pennsylvania |
| Area | 0.2 acres (0.08 ha) |
| Built | 1867 |
| Architectural style | Bow string truss |
| NRHP reference No. | 78002375 |
| Added to NRHP | March 28, 1978 |
The Hares Hill Road Bridge is a special kind of bridge in Kimberton, Pennsylvania, and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. It was built way back in 1869! This bridge is unique because it's the only one left of its kind. It crosses over French Creek, which is a beautiful river in Pennsylvania. The bridge is made of strong wrought iron and has a cool bowstring shape, like an archer's bow.
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What Makes This Bridge Special?
The Hares Hill Road Bridge is made of a single piece of wrought iron that stretches about 103 feet 4 inches (31.50 m) long. It's supported by stone walls called abutments at each end. These walls were also built in 1869 by Abraham Taney Jr.
This bridge is very important because it's the only known example of a special design. This design was patented by Thomas William Moseley. Because it's so unique, the bridge is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's recognized as a historically important site.
The bridge carries one lane of traffic on Hares Hill Road. On one side of French Creek, there are houses, and on the other side, there's a wooded area.
How the Bridge Was Built
The main part of the bridge used to have two arched iron beams with a timber (wood) floor. These arched beams were made of special "Z"-shaped bars. These bars were connected to a central plate. Diagonal pieces of iron filled the space between the top and bottom parts of the plate.
Each arch had seven vertical pieces that helped support the floor. There were also diagonal rods that stretched from the bottom of the center vertical piece on both sides of each arch.
The Bridge's Changing Colors
Locally, people sometimes call this bridge the "Silver Bridge." This is because of its silver color. However, for many years, the bridge was actually yellow! It was painted silver again during a big repair project in 2010.
Keeping the Bridge Strong
The Hares Hill Road Bridge has been repaired and updated many times over the years. These repairs help keep it safe and strong for cars to cross.
In 2009, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) planned to spend a lot of money to fix up the bridge. They wanted to make it stronger without changing its historic look.
On June 22, 2010, the bridge was closed for a big repair job. Workers replaced the old steel deck with a new one. The new deck even had a concrete section in the middle for bicycles! This repair cost about $826,689 and was finished on December 10, 2010. After this work, the bridge could hold heavier loads.
The bridge closed again on June 11, 2018, for more repairs. PennDOT's team worked on fixing damaged walls and adding new safety rails. They also put back a special historic plaque that was on the bridge. A new plaque was added to remember the 2018 repairs. The bridge reopened on August 20, 2018.
