Dunlap's Creek Bridge
Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
An integral part of the National Road, this was the first metal arch bridge in the United States, built 1836-39. Replacing several earlier bridges on this site, including an 1809 Finley suspension bridge, this 80-foot span was built of cast iron by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Capt. Richard Delafield and Lieutenant George W. Cass oversaw construction.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Spanning Dunlap's Creek along the National Road at Brownsville, this 80-foot cast-iron span was built between 1836 and 1839 as the first metal arch bridge in the United States. It replaced a string of earlier crossings on the site, including an 1809 Finley suspension bridge, and was fabricated under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with Capt. Richard Delafield and Lt. George W. Cass overseeing the work. It carried the young republic's great westward highway on a structure that pointed toward the age of iron.
Why it matters
As America's first iron arch bridge, it marks a turning point in engineering on the National Road, the federal artery that carried settlers and commerce into the trans-Appalachian West.
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Related people
- · Richard Delafield
- · George W. Cass
Themes & tags
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