Lower Trenton Bridge

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Lower Trenton Bridge
The south side of the bridge
Official name Lower Trenton Toll Supported Bridge
Other name(s) Trenton Makes Bridge
Carries 2 lanes of Business US 1
Crosses Delaware River
Locale Morrisville, Pennsylvania and Trenton, New Jersey
Maintained by Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission
Total length 1,022 feet
Opened January 30, 1806 (original span), 1928 (current bridge)
Coordinates 40°12′38″N 74°46′06″W / 40.2105°N -74.7683°E / 40.2105; -74.7683Coordinates: 40°12′38″N 74°46′06″W / 40.2105°N -74.7683°E / 40.2105; -74.7683
The Lower Trenton Bridge at night, from the side of Rt. 29 southbound, Trenton, NJ.

The Lower Trenton Toll Supported Bridge, commonly called the Lower Free Bridge, Warren Street Bridge or Trenton Makes Bridge, is a two-lane through truss bridge over the Delaware River between Trenton, New Jersey and Morrisville, Pennsylvania, owned by the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC). It is known as the Trenton Makes Bridge because of large lettering on the south side reading "TRENTON MAKES   THE WORLD TAKES", installed in 1935. In addition to being an important bridge from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, it is a major landmark in the city of Trenton.

As one goes downstream, this bridge is the last free vehicular crossing of the Delaware; although it is owned by the DRJTBC, no toll is collected. All downstream vehicular crossings are tolled.

Contents

[edit] History

The bridge was originally a toll bridge operated by the Trenton Delaware Bridge Company. It opened on January 30, 1806, and was the first bridge across the Delaware.

In 1835 the Camden and Amboy Rail Road bought the bridge and the competing Philadelphia and Trenton Railroad to end the rivalry and the attempts by the P&T to put tracks over the bridge. The extension over the bridge was built soon after, and it was later connected to the C&A. At the time, the Lower Trenton Bridge was the first railroad bridge in the United States to be used for interstate rail traffic. The bridge was rebuilt in 1875, 1876, 1892, and 1898 to keep up with the growing demands of rail traffic. A new alignment for the railroad was completed in 1903, crossing the river on the Morrisville-Trenton Railroad Bridge.[1] At this point, roadway trusses dating to 1876 were left in place while railroad girders built in 1892 and 1898 were relocated to the Long Bridge in Washington, D.C.[2]

On March 31, 1918 the bridge, then owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad, was sold to the state governments and tolls were removed. The company was dissolved September 15, 1919 in New Jersey and June 9, 1920 in Pennsylvania. With the removal of tolls, the Lincoln Highway was moved to the bridge from the tolled Calhoun Street Bridge in 1920. The bridge was then designated US 1 in 1927; it was replaced by the current bridge in 1928. In 1952 US 1 was moved to the new Trenton-Morrisville Toll Bridge, and for a time the old bridge was designated Alternate US 1. It is now marked as Business US 1, but only on the New Jersey side.

The "TRENTON MAKES   THE WORLD TAKES" sign on the south side of the bridge was installed in 1935 and first replaced in 1981. In 2005, the sign was replaced with one featuring higher-efficiency neon lighting, with better water proofing than the old sign, to help reduce maintenance costs.

[edit] Spotting

The sign is easily spotted from Amtrak and SEPTA trains on the Northeast Corridor as they cross the river. On northbound trains, the sign is visible from the left side of the train, on southbound trains, from the right.

[edit] Appearances in popular culture

The "TRENTON MAKES   THE WORLD TAKES" sign can be seen in the movie "Stealing Home" when Mark Harmon's bus crosses the bridge. It is also briefly featured in the 1983 film Baby, It's You (as part of a road trip to the Jersey Shore, in which case you would not cross this bridge) as well as the 2007 film Rocket Science. It was in the unaired pilot of House.

The sign can also be seen in Trenton's own Poor Righteous Teachers 1990 video of their song "Rock This Funky Joint"

The Bridge is also seen on the album cover of The Cryptkeeper Five's 2004 album "Trenton Makes" by the Cryptkeeper Five.

Local people sometimes refer to the bridge as the "Trenton Makes" bridge.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Pennsylvania Railroad, Delaware River Bridge," Historic American Engineering Record No. PA-512, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
  2. ^ "Ingenuity Marks Bridge Renewal," Railway Age, vol. 118, No. 3 (20 Jan. 1945): 187-90.
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