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  • "Tin Bridge" in Westfield, MA

  • Pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in New England
Pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in New England

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 #680807  by penncentral
 
I`m looking for information about the rail road bridge in Westfield ,Ma called Tin Bridge. It was part of the New Haven and Northampton line. It was built on the canal of the same points. I was told it may have been called TEN bridge and changed over time to TIN. A some point did the RR`s number their bridges instead of names? Any sources or refereces would be appreciated.
 #681055  by Arborwayfan
 
I think I rember reading that part of the original Bussey Bridge in Roslindale (collapsed 1887) was wood, covered with tin. So maybe there was an original tin(plated) bridge in Westfield that gave its name to the Tin Bridge, or the idea of tinplated bridges made it easy for someone to change the name by mistake.
 #682517  by Jedijk88
 
According to my knowledge, the name "Tin Bridge" was something known among the locals. When Penn Central came on the scene in the early '70's, the line saw little use as a through route. According to Ronald Karr, only fifteen trains were run between Simsbury CT and Westfield in 1973. By this time, the Tin Bridge was mainly used by a Penn Central local based out of Westfield, which ran to Southwick to serve the team track used by local farmers. When Conrail arrived, the Tin Bridge was included in the property they acquired in Westfield, with their trackage dead-ending just south of the bridge. Conrail did store cars on that segment of track in the early '80's, so it's possible cars were stored on the bridge. The last I knew, the bridge was owned by the tobacco farm that is adjacent to the area.
 #682961  by cougar3676
 
Does anyone know if the PVRR ever ran over "tin bridge?" Or did they stop at Columbia Manufacturing? Or was it Commercial Distributors? I remember seeing rail cars inside the HB Smith complex in the mid 80's when I was a small child.
 #683036  by Jedijk88
 
The PVRR never ran over the Tin Bridge. They did own the trackage leading up to the bridge on the northside, but the trackage south was abandoned in 1976. Columbia Manufacturing was the southernmost customer the PVRR served, and did so until about 1988. They did however use the tracks south of the Columbia switch on occasion to store stone hoppers.
 #684676  by cougar3676
 
Thanks for all the info on the tin bridge. It was a popular hang out for us "locals" when we were young. Tin bridge captured my imagination at a young age, and I always wished I could have been there when it was in active service. I remember the approach bridge over South Broad St. had severely deteriorated ties, so bad you didn't dare to walk over it...and this was in 1988 I would say. So I was pretty sure at that time it hadn't been used in quite some time. I remember seeing Conrail box cars at Commercial Distributing, and I think Day Lumber may have gotten centerbeam lumber cars, but I could be imagining that. I thought I saw one there one day, and by the time I got back to investigate, it was gone. I am certain I saw cars in HB Smith in the mid 80's, say 1985, but by the late 80's they didn't get cars anymore. Some of my earliest childhood memories of trains are seeing the Pioneer Valley's SW1s in action on this section of the line. I was sad when it was embargoed in the late 1990's, reportedly due to a truck hitting one of the many small bridges on the line and putting it out of commission. PVRR probably couldn't justify the expense of replacing it and therefore abandoned the line. It will make a really nice trail though, as much as it pains me to say so. I guess I would rather see people enjoying it instead of it just sitting there slowly being reclaimed by nature.
 #684818  by Jedijk88
 
HB Smith received boxcars to about 1990, before the plant was slowly mothballed and moved to the other side of town. The HB Smith siding was actually reused in 1995 to deliver cars to Lumber Center next door. Day Lumber did get bulkhead flatcars until the late '80s and that track used to cross South Broad St. and go into the Strathmore Paper complex. In the PC days, there was a yard behind Strathmore (I think it was Hammermill Papers then) and in the New Haven days, that track extended all the way to Stevens Paper mill. You can see where the track was, the powerlines occupy the ROW.
 #684889  by 3rdrail
 
Arborwayfan wrote:I think I rember reading that part of the original Bussey Bridge in Roslindale (collapsed 1887) was wood, covered with tin. So maybe there was an original tin(plated) bridge in Westfield that gave its name to the Tin Bridge, or the idea of tinplated bridges made it easy for someone to change the name by mistake.
I don't know about the original Bussey Bridge (the one there now is the third incarnation at a slightly different location) being covered by tin (It was an iron bridge with masonary abutments), but I do know that iron bridges of the time were often referred to as "The Tin Bridge". Reason being was that most relatively short spans were wooden back then and the idea of a metal one was a novelty. By the way, the supposed "bridge constructor" had no idea what he was doing and also caused the deaths of many persons in an almost identical situation up in Vermont when one of his creations collapsed as well. Anyway, as a result of this common nickname, there are many iron bridges that have been named the "Tin Bridge".
 #688767  by ki6bu
 
I grew up just south of Tin Bridge in Shaker Heights, We moved there in 1966 at the age of 9. I remember seeing mostly box cars in both directions.
During the summer months us kids would hear the train whistle and we would ride our bikes to see the train. I remember many trains in those days.
I hated to cross the bridge by foot, it just plain scared the crap out of me. I moved away from there in 1982 and I don't remember seeing any cars stored on the tracks.
About 5 years ago I flew back to visit and I walked the now missing train tracks and stopped at Tin Bridge. The ties looked fine, but as I took my fifth step all my old fears came back and I turned around. So things just never change.
 #904272  by themacster
 
I'm assuming you mean the bridge adjacent to North Elm street. You may or may not find this of interest but in the late 1990's, sometime in the late Summer of Early Fall, my Army National Guard Unit as part of a Drill weekend marched across the "Tin Bridge" on our way to train at the school above Pochassic Street. I remember walking over the beams and looking down at the water while carrying about 30 pounds of equipment. I made sure I stayed on the center beam.
 #1071679  by bubblegumm75
 
I have been trying to look this up but I am pretty sure that TIN BRIDGE was originally the #10 bridge on the railroad line. Like you had said earlier. Later was called TIN BRIDGE. I will keep researching. I have lived in Westfield for all but 3 years of my life and remember trains all the time. I even fished off the TIn Bridge as a kid. I went to cross it last year with my kids and was not as brave as I was when I was a teenager. Lots of missing ties. I have seen people ride across it with mountain bikes to get to the rail trail thats just on the other side. For me I would take one of the paths down the hill, wade through the water, and climb up the other side before crossing it. Hopefully it wont be long before the rail trail project is done and my family and I can enjoy the view from the Tin Bridge once again.