Middlefield–Becket Stone Arch Railroad Bridge District facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Middlefield–Becket Stone Arch Railroad Bridge District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Near Middlefield Road in Chester
Location in Massachusetts Show map of Massachusetts Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Nearest city	Chester, Massachusetts
Built	1840
Architect	George Washington Whistler
NRHP reference No.	80000502
Added to NRHP	April 11, 1980

The Middlefield–Becket Stone Arch Railroad Bridge District is a special area in Massachusetts. It has many old and important railroad bridges. This district stretches through parts of Chester, Middlefield, and Becket, Massachusetts.

There are ten bridges along a 3.7-mile (6 km) stretch of railroad tracks. Nine of these bridges cross the west branch of the Westfield River. These bridges were built at different times. Some were built in 1840, others in 1866, 1912, and 1928. Most of them are made of stone or concrete. One bridge is a steel truss girder bridge. All the bridges are in great shape, almost like new.

These bridges were built for the Western Railroad. They helped trains travel from the Connecticut River to the Hudson River. Building this part of the railroad was very expensive. It cost over $1 million in 1840, which was a huge amount of money back then!

Who Built the Bridges?

The first bridges, built in 1840, were designed by George Washington Whistler. His team, Alexander Birney's company, built them. Out of the nine original stone bridges, only three are still standing today. These three are no longer used by trains.

Some of the old bridges were either torn down or covered in concrete. This happened during construction work in 1912 and 1927. One bridge was completely removed in 1927.

Newer Bridges and Their Materials

One of the bridges, number 4, was built in 1912. It is made of concrete. It stands next to an older stone bridge (number 3) from 1840 that was taken out of service. The only steel truss bridge in the district was also built in 1912. It was made by the Pennsylvania Steel Company.

This bridge district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. This means it is recognized as an important historical site.

Visiting the Bridges

You can visit these historic bridges! A hiking trail was opened in 2004. This trail lets you see the lower seven bridges up close. If you like water sports, you can also see all the bridges from the river. Just make sure you use a boat that is safe for whitewater.

Bridge List

This table shows details about each bridge in the district. Most of these bridges were still in use in 1980. They mostly cross the West Branch Westfield River, unless noted otherwise.

#	CSX Bridge #	Image	Year built	Location	Description
1	128.21		1866	42°18′45.6″N 72°59′38.3″W / 42.312667°N 72.993972°W / 42.312667; -72.993972	A stone arch bridge with two spans.
2	128.44		1912	42°18′50.8″N 72°59′52.3″W / 42.314111°N 72.997861°W / 42.314111; -72.997861	A steel bridge with a flat deck.
3	out of service		1840-41	42°18′35.8″N 73°00′10.4″W / 42.309944°N 73.002889°W / 42.309944; -73.002889	An old stone arch bridge. It stopped being used in 1912.
4	129.28		1913	42°18′35.7″N 73°00′11.4″W / 42.309917°N 73.003167°W / 42.309917; -73.003167	A concrete arch bridge.
5	out of service		1840-41	42°18′20.3″N 73°00′19.0″W / 42.305639°N 73.005278°W / 42.305639; -73.005278	A stone arch bridge.
6	out of service		1840-41	42°18′31.8″N 73°00′51.3″W / 42.308833°N 73.014250°W / 42.308833; -73.014250	A stone arch bridge.
7	130.10		1912	42°18′33.2″N 73°01′04.8″W / 42.309222°N 73.018000°W / 42.309222; -73.018000	A concrete arch bridge.
8	130.46		1866/1912	42°18′36.2″N 73°01′29.7″W / 42.310056°N 73.024917°W / 42.310056; -73.024917	A stone and concrete arch bridge. It crosses Factory Brook and Town Hill Road.
9	131.50		1928	42°19′05.9″N 73°02′22.7″W / 42.318306°N 73.039639°W / 42.318306; -73.039639	A concrete arch bridge.
10	131.70		1928	42°19′11.6″N 73°02′34.6″W / 42.319889°N 73.042944°W / 42.319889; -73.042944	A concrete arch bridge.

Images for kids

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  Near Middlefield Road in Chester

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  Bridge #1

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  Bridge #2

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  Bridge #3

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  Bridge #4

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  Bridge #5

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  Bridge #6

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  Bridge #7

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  Bridge #8