Stone Bridge
About this property
The Stone Bridge is a historic bridge in Hartford, Connecticut, carrying Main Street across the Whitehead Highway just South of the City's Downtown. Built in 1833 across the Park River, it was the largest single-span stone bridge in the United States at its completion. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. The Stone Bridge is located just South of Downtown Hartford, serving as the main span carrying Main Street across Whitehead Highway, a limited access connector between Interstate 91 and the capitol district. The highway is built atop a conduit that carries the Park River to the nearby Connecticut River. It now appears as a segmented arch, although it was originally built as a rounded arch over the then-unchanneled river. The bridge has a span of 104 feet (32 m) and has a width of 100 feet (30 m). It is built out of cut brownstone, with stone parapets lining the roadway. The parapets were originally topped by wrought iron railings, one of which was removed when the adjacent Hartford Public Library was built over the highway just east of the bridge. A bridge has stood at this location since at least the 17th century. Bridges before this one were built of wood. The present bridge was built in 1833 at a cost of $30,000 by Elias Rathbun, a local contractor. The bridge was built at a higher elevation over the river (about 30 feet 9 inches (9.37 m) above the riverbed), necessitating the raising of the grade on the approaches. It became a local landmark, featured in period depictions of the city. In 1955 the river was enclosed and the highway built above it, and in 1955-57 the library was built on the adjacent plaza. National Register of Historic Places listings in Hartford, Connecticut List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Stone Bridge
This page lists Stone Bridge. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Stone Bridge listed on the National Register?
Stone Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 28, 1985.
What type of historic resource is Stone Bridge?
Stone Bridge is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Stone Bridge?
The period of significance for Stone Bridge is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Stone Bridge?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Stone Bridge will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Hartford County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Hartford County.
Explore HartfordCounty ›More historic places in Connecticut
Browse all historic places in Connecticut.
View Connecticuthistoric sites ›Connecticut history
Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.
Connecticuthistory ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Stone Bridge will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.