Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge, Spanning Rock Creek & Potomac Parkway, Washington, District of Columbia, DC

Significance: Cast-iron water mains from the Aqueduct Bridge by Montgomery Meigs, the span that preceded the present bridge, are encased in the concrete arch and are visible on the underside. These pipes were integral to the city's early water supply, and they continue to function as a link in the system that carries water from the reservoir in Georgetown to the city of Washington proper. The 1915-16 concrete arch span elicited a complaint from the Commission of Fine Arts about its design, and initiated a debate about the proper form of Rock Creek crossings.

Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N130

Survey number: HAER DC-21

Building/structure dates: 1858- 1860 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: 1915- 1916 Subsequent Work

concrete arch bridges transportation trails and paths washington city bridge pennsylvania avenue bridge rock creek potomac potomac parkway washington dc pennsylvania avenue district of columbia army corps of engineers commission of fine arts dc bridge division hardaway construction company historic american engineering record sara amy leach montgomery c meigs kristen o connell phoenix iron company photo ultra high resolution high resolution library of congress

1969 - 1980

Library of Congress

http://www.loc.gov/

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