Dingman's Ferry Bridge

The Dingmans Ferry Bridge is the last privately-owned toll bridge on the Delaware River and one of the last few in the country. It is owned by the Dingmans Choice and Delaware Bridge Company.

In 1735, Andrew Dingman, a Dutch pioneer from Kinderhook, New York, operated a ferry that connected the Old Mine Road in Sussex County, New Jersey to the Bethany Turnpike (now PA Route 739) in Dingman Township, Pennsylvania in Pike County. The ferry thrived for over a century as pioneers utilized this important river crossing. A house was built near the present-day bridge in 1803 by Judge Daniel W. Dingman, who was said to hold court in his bare feet; the house is on the State and National historic registers.

In 1836, the first bridge was built by the Dingmans. Under the terms of its charter, churchgoers, schoolchildren, and funeral processions were given free passage, a condition that is still in effect today.

The first bridge lasted until 1847 when high water washed away the Milford Brige upstream and swept the debris into Dingmans Bridge. This bridge was destroyed four or five years later in a severe windstorm. A third bridge was constructed in 1856, but, being of poor quality, it fell apart by 1862. The ferry was operated once again by the Dingmans until the property was sold in 1875 to John W. Kilsby, Sr., whose family operated the ferry until the turn of the century when the current bridge was constructed using some materials recycled from a railroad bridge on the Susquehanna River. This bridge has survived major floods in 1903 and 1955.

The village of Dingmans Choice, which became so identified with the ferry, had its name changed by the Post Office to Dingmans Ferry in 1868. Crossing on the ferry took some time; the ferryman on the western bank had to be summoned by a bell on the eastern shore.

Records from an early log book show tolls of 40 cents for a horseless carriage, 25 cents for a two-horse wagon, 10 cents for a horse and rider, 5 cents for a bicycle, and 2 cents for a footman. Today's fees are not much higher. Bicyclists may cross for free, but pedestrians are not allowed due to the narrow lanes. Weight restrictions preclude large RVs and trucks from using it also. Although the bridge is within the Delaware Water Gap recreation area, government employees pay the toll unless responding to an emergency with lights and sirens.

Because the Bridge Company is responsible for its own repairs, it employs an engineering firm certified for bridge inspection to regularly and thoroughly inspect the bridge from the tops of the trusses to the underwater foundations. Each year, the bridge company closes the bridge for a few weeks to conduct any repairs needed to maintain the structural integrity of the bridge and to replace or flip the salt-treated Canadian fir planks. These floor boards are held in place with anchor plates and collar nails which explains why the bridge rumbles with the traffic.

Text is adapted from the NPS website below

External links

• Spanning the Gap The newsletter of Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Vol. 15 No. 2 Summer 1993
• Official Site of the Dingmans Choice and Delaware Bridge Company: History and Photos

Sources

• Henn, William F., The Story of the River Road