Related

• - Browse neighboring items by call number.
• Collection: Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey

• Title: Boston & Maine Railroad, Charles River Bridges, Charles River, North Station vicinity, Boston, Suffolk County, MA
• Creator(s): Historic American Engineering Record, creator
• Related Names:
     Keller & Harrington
     Phoenix Bridge Company
     Boston & Maine Railroad
     Yearby, Jean P , transmitter
     Stott, Peter , photographer
     Stott, Peter , historian
• Date Created/Published: Documentation compiled after 1968
• Medium: Photo(s): 2
  Data Page(s): 3
  Photo Caption Page(s): 1
• Reproduction Number: ---
• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. (http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html)
  
• Call Number: HAER MASS,13-BOST,74-
• Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
• Notes:
  • Significance: Part of the extensive terminal improvement program by the Boston & Maine Railroad, and the last element to be completed, was the replacement and realignment of the railroad's crossings of the Charles River. The Boston & Lowell was the first railroad in the U.S. to be faced with the need for a movable bridge, when in 1835 their tracks had to cross the Charles River in order to enter Boston. The railroad's solution was a movable span with a horizontal swing, hinged at the corner of one end. A system of cables supported the free end of the span. The structure was the forerunner of the jackknife bridge, invented in 1849. One by one, the three other railroads crossing the Charles River adopted this solution (and later the jackknife design), which became a characteristic feature of the railroads north of Boston. Beginning in the 1890s, most movable railroad bridges were replaced by steel bascule spans. Not until 1931, however, were the Charles River bridges replaces. To the very last, the bridges were air and steam operated. In 1931, after extensive filling and dredging, the channel of the Charles River was relocated further away from North Station to allow the terminal tracks to converge into eight main leads crossing the river. The four new structures were double-track, single-leaf, rolling-life bascule bridges, a design made famous by the Scherzer Rolling Life Company of Chicago. All four were nearly identical in design, varying only in their length and the degree of their skew, two spans crossing the channel at a slightly greater skew than the others. Two were 87 feet in length and two, 97 feet. Each span carried a single 629-ton overhead concrete counterweight and, operated by two electric motors, was controlled from the second floor of the new signal and interlocking station, located nearby on the north side of the river. The bridges were designed by Keller & Harrington, Chicago, while the steelwork was fabricated and erected by the Phoenix Bridge Company, Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. Today, only two of the bascule spans remain.
  • Survey number: HAER MA-22
  • Building/structure dates: 1931 Initial Construction
• Subjects:
  • railroad bridges
  • vertical lift bridges
• Place:
  • Massachusetts -- Suffolk County -- Boston
• Latitude/Longitude: 42.36891, -71.06603
• Collections:
  • Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey
• Part of: Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)
• Bookmark This Record:
     https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ma1194/

The Library of Congress generally does not own rights to material in its collections and, therefore, cannot grant or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute the material. For further rights information, see "Rights Information" below and the Rights and Restrictions Information page ( https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/rights.html ).

• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted. http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/114_habs.html
• Reproduction Number: ---
• Call Number: HAER MASS,13-BOST,74-
• Medium: Photo(s): 2
  Data Page(s): 3
  Photo Caption Page(s): 1

If Digital Images Are Displaying

You can download online images yourself. Alternatively, you can purchase copies of various types through Library of Congress Duplication Services.

HABS/HAER/HALS materials have generally been scanned at high resolution that is suitable for most publication purposes (see Digitizing the Collection for further details about the digital images).

• Photographs--All photographs are printed from digital files to preserve the fragile originals.
• Make note of the Call Number and Item Number that appear under the photograph in the multiple-image display (e.g., HAER, NY,52-BRIG,4-2).
• If possible, include a printout of the photograph.
• Drawings--All drawings are printed from digital files to preserve the fragile originals.
• Make note of the Survey Number (e.g., HAER NY - 143) and Sheet Number (e.g., "Sheet 1 of 4"), which appear on the edge of the drawing. (NOTE: These numbers are visible in the Tiff "Reference Image" display.)
• If possible, include a printout of the drawing.
• Data Pages
• Make note of the Call Number in the catalog record.

If Digital Images Are Not Displaying

In the rare case that a digital image for HABS/HAER/HALS documentation is not displaying online, select images for reproduction through one of these methods:

• Visit the Prints & Photographs Reading Room and request to view the group (general information about service in the reading room is available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/info/001_ref.html). It is best to contact reference staff in advance (see: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/address.html) to make sure the material is on site. OR
• P&P reading room staff can provide up to 15 quick copies of items per calendar year (many original items in the holdings are too old or fragile to make such copies, but generally HABS/HAER/HALS materials are in good enough condition to be placed on photocopy machines). For assistance, see our Ask a Librarian page OR
• Hire a freelance researcher to do further selection for you (a list of researchers in available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/resource/013_pic.html).
• You can purchase copies of various types, including quick copies, through Library of Congress Duplication Services (price lists, contact information, and order forms for Library of Congress Duplication Services are available on the Duplication Services Web site):
• Make note of the Call Number listed above.
• Look at the Medium field above. If it lists more than one item:
• The entire group can be ordered as photocopies or high-quality copies.
• All the items in a particular medium (e.g., all drawings, all photographs) can be ordered as photocopies or high-quality copies.

• Call Number: HAER MASS,13-BOST,74-
• Medium: Photo(s): 2
  Data Page(s): 3
  Photo Caption Page(s): 1

Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.

1. Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will be visible on the left.)

   • Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.

     As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)

   • No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.

2. Do the Access Advisory or Call Number fields above indicate that a non-digital surrogate exists, such as microfilm or copy prints?

   • Yes, another surrogate exists. Reference staff can direct you to this surrogate.

   • No, another surrogate does not exist. Please go to #3.

3. If you do not see a thumbnail image or a reference to another surrogate, please fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room. In many cases, the originals can be served in a few minutes. Other materials require appointments for later the same day or in the future. Reference staff can advise you in both how to fill out a call slip and when the item can be served.

To contact Reference staff in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room, please use our Ask A Librarian service or call the reading room between 8:30 and 5:00 at 202-707-6394, and Press 3.