Little Salmon River Trestle

About

The Little Salmon River trestle is a railway trestle bridge completed in 1911 and still in use in the community of New Denmark, near Grand Falls, New Brunswick, Canada. It is the second largest railway bridge in Canada and the largest railway structure in New Brunswick. The bridge was commissioned in 1906 as a section of the National Transcontinental Railway to span the wide valley of the Little Salmon River, a tributary of the Saint John River. Although the Little Salmon River is relatively small, it follows a deep and wide valley carved by glaciers. Aiming to avoid the steep grades required to descend and cross the river, the National Transcontinental instead designed a long viaduct to cross the entire valley. It was built by the Dominion Bridge Company using 6,346.35 tonnes (13, 991, 310 lb) of steel for a total cost of $678,623. Construction began on July 27, 1910 using a travelling crane system, prefabricated components and a work crew of 60 to 80 men. The last span was installed on February 9, 1911. Final riveting and painting were completed to open the bridge on August 19, 1911. Despite construction taking place at great heights in all seasons, the work was completed without any accidents or injuries. The bridge's great length made it the second largest in Canada after the Lethbridge Viaduct in Alberta. The National Transcontinental Railway ran into financial difficultie

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.