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 ALBUM OF DESIGNS
OK TIIK

PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS.

CLARKE, REEVES & CO.,

OFFICE No. 410 WALNUT STREET, -^

PHILADELPHIA.

J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO.

PHILADELPHIA.
1873.
H-

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 :

Thomas Clakkk,
C.
AllULfHUS DllNZANO,
{CHIN Gmi'mN,
PIKUNIXVILLR HRIPGR-WORKS.
)AVI11 KliUVUS.

Offich of CLARKE, REEVES & CO.,

ENuINEERS, CONTRACTORS, AND BUILDERS OF IRON BRIDGES, VIADUCTS, ROOFS, ETC.

NO. 410 WALNUT STREET, ROOM 2.

P. O. Lock Box No. a.

p JJ J I^ D \l L P H J A.

In presenting our second circular, we take occasion What we claim as the peculiar advantages of our
to call the attention of our friends and customers to bridges are as follows :

the following points: We use that style of truss (originally developed in

We have entered into contract with the Phoenix wood by Pratt and in iron by Whipple) which expe-
Iron Company, Phoenixville, Pa., for a long term rience has shown to be the best adapted for railway
of years, by which that Company transfers to us all purposes, as there are more of them in use in this
their iron bridge-building, and orders for bridges and country than of any other kind.
viaducts are handed to us for execution. So far as we have modified the connections and other
By this arrangement the whole resources of the details of construction, we have endeavored to be guided
Phoenix Iron Company can be concentrated upon tiie by the following principles
fulfdlment of our orders. Their present facilities are Simplicity and uniformity of construction ; least pos-
equal to turning out o/zc hundred feet of finished bridge sible exposure of surliice to corrosion ; uniformity of
for eaeh ivorkiitg day in the year, and can be increased, strain on all parts alike ; concentration of material
in case of necessity. along the lines of strain ; and the use of the most suit-

Everything is done upon the premises; beginning able kind of material for tlie purposes required.
with the manufacture of the iron from tlie ore, next At the request of many railway-men, we have pre-
rolling it into the sliapes required, and finally apply- pared a set of der>igns, accompanied by detailed speci-

ing the machine-labor that completes the structure fications, covering the proportions and quality of
ready for erection.* It is believed that all this is done material and workmanship under which they will be
by no other single company in this country. constructed.
It results in a uniform excellence of quality of iron They have nearly all been actually built by us, and
and workmanship, which cannot be got from bridge- have borne the test of use. Persons requiring bridges
builders who procure their iron from different makers, will find among these everything they want, unless for
and generally at the cheapest rates. special ca.ses, for which we will prepare special plans
We are prepared to construct any style of wrought- and estimates, free of charge, when requested.
iron bridge, and according to any specified dimensions We build our short spans stronger than has been
and wciglits at the same time, we would call the at-
; heretofore customary, providing for a variable load of
tention of engineers and railway-men to that style of two tons per foot. We do this, because there is gen-
bridge which we have been building during the last erallyno slackening of speed in crossing a short span,
five years, which has stood the test of use, with the and the live load of the locomotive bears a much greater
marked approbation of those best able to judge. proportion to the lead-weighl of the structure in short
than in long spans. At 250 feet span the live and
'''
See description of Pliojnix Works, illustrrtleil by woodcuts. Ex-
dead loads are nearly equal, while on a 30-feet span
Iriictecl, by permission, from Lippiiuotl's Mai;aziiie. Appendix No. i. the live load is more than four times the dead load.
 : :

PIUENIXVILLE BRIDGE -WORKS.

As the live load is accompanied with imi)act and vibra- 3. (live the height of bottom of rail above bed of
tion, and foiir-fiftlis of the strain comes from it, it is stream.
but prudent to taice this into account.* 4. State whether the railway company will themselves
In i)roportioning the different parts of our bridges, builil the lower staging up to the track-level, or not.
the strain i)er square inch is diminished ; or in otlier 5. If not, give the depth of svater, and whether the
words, tiie strength of each part is increased in pro- nature of the bottom recpiires piles, or not.
portion to its nearness to its work. As the panel 6. If a viaduct be recpiired, it will be better to send a
system is by the passage of each locomo-
fully strained ( ross-section of the valley, indicating such points as re-
tive, it should have greater strength than the chord (juire a fixed length of span, such asstreams, roads, etc.

system, which can only get its maximum strain when If railway companies prefer to erect the iron-work
the whole length of the bridge is covered with loco- themselves, we will furnish a competent person to
motives, which in practice seldom occurs on spans superintend the erection, and guarantee the work
longer than loo feet. The bolts which support the coming together with exactness. It will generally be
floor system, being subject to accidental shocks, have found more satisfactory that we should erect the bridge
the greatest strength of all. This is merely follow- and lay the track upon it ready for use, the company
ing out in p.actice the principle of "uniformity of furnishing ties and rails and the timber and other
strains." Inasmuch as the strength of an iron bridge materials for staging.
(like that of an iron chain) is measured by the strength With the above-mentioned data furnished, we can
of its weakest part, it follows that the structure in by return of mail, to any one who wants
(juote prices,

which tiiis principle is most accurately carried out will :

bridges, and can construct the bridges in as short a
be the strongest, while the purchasers of the bridge
I
time as any other bridge-builders can do. We wish
will not be compelled to pay for useless iron, which it particularly understood that our cash rates are uni-
diminishes instead of adding to its strength. On the form to all persons alike; modified only by the amount
other hand, if bridges are too light, they will show this \
of work ordered. We can always execute an order for
defect by excessive vibration under a passing train. a number of bridges for a less price each than for a
This fault, we believe, our bridges cannot be charge<l single one, on account of the reduplication of parts
with. We furnish diagrams of strains, giving the lessening the cost of manufacture, and the less cost of
actual dimensions of each part, and the calculated erection, for various obvious reasons.
strains. j
We will make special plans and estimates to suit any
We have given fourteen plates, in which are shown '
required case, but wish to point out that there will be
all the different kinds of iron bridges occurring in a marked economy insured, both in cost and in time,
ordinary practice. Each style of bridge is distin- by selecting one of our regular styles of bridge, as per
guished by a letter and number. plan and si)ecification, as we have now on hand a large
Persons requiring bridges will please follow the fol- stock of dies and patterns which are applicable to
lowing directions them.*
1. Give the and number o{ figure for the gen-
letter The following is a list of the iron railway and
eral style of bridge required, and the length of spans '

other bridges and viaducts that we have built, or are

between centres of piers, and width of piers, if any are building, since our connection with the Phcenix Iron
built. !
Company ; also, of the railways and their officers for
2. State whether the bridge is at right angles or on ;
whom they were built, and to whom we would respect-
a skew. If the latter, give the angle included between fully refer parties desirous of further information as to
line of piers and axis of bridge.
I
our capacity

* See extract from p.tper read before Aineric.in Society of Civil ' See extract from Rai/roati Gazi't/i, describing competition for
Engineers, by J. Griffon and T. C. Clarke. Appendix No. 2. new bridsjes in tlic Dominion of Canada.
 . 1

VHiENlX VILLE BRJD GE WORKH. -

LIST OF
WROUGHT-IRON BRIDGES AND VIADUCTS,
BUILT AND NOW BUILDING BY

CLARKE, REEVES & CO.,

FROM 1869 TO 1873.

I'OH WIIUM UUILI. WIIRKK IIUILT. 'A roll WHOM UUll.T. WillUli! laiLT.

NO. LKNGMI. NO. LCNGTIt.

C. H. &Q HurliiiKi'Mi, Mo 133

3880
Ches. ft Ohio R. R Rivanna Creek 97 97
ItlinuiK Central La Salic, 111 18 l&o S. Schotield .M.inayunk, Highway. 93 93
ChiraKoft N. W CMilltnll, Inwa 150 300 Ohio ft .Miss. R, R (.lochran M5 45
I'liilad , Wil. & llaliimori;. Chtislcr, l*a. Iracks J 54 308 No, u 47 47
' " Draw, i Iracks '-7 508 " " "47
8j Medora {:= 163
I 310
KcMiliiii; K. K Flowerti'wii 8j J
55
" " Scoltvillc
55 '77 53'
llrid^cton, N. j llrid^eton. IJraw -5 '.<5 WestKork 307 4^4
Nurifi Ptiiinsyfwini.i R. R.. Saiictm Creek 54 " "
77 "Ik SuKar >"3 I>3
U. S. ArHcn.il Rock Island, III. Ilitjliway. 150 60U " " Little Siiijar 3-'
33
f4 "74 1 Little Wabash,, 93 y2
I'urllandS: Kl-hhuIio: R U AiiUUsla, Me I 154 1

975 (.-:
Grand Trunk R'wayofCau, St. Hyacinthe.. 37'
27)
" "
Conn. Air Line R. R Viaduct '7 5'. .. I'.lack River 55
4S 48 (
I- 154
ViO .. White River... 1- 232
Norili I'ou.l IJO 1 73f
Ilaileyville n n ( I- IS.)
Saddle Hill .5fi 56
. ,St. Francis (- M"i
297
I'istoi Factory 111 M:.>;oK 118
I.yniau Viadui-t, j tracks 1112 2324 Massawippi.... "7 '7
7
,

Rapallo J7 3756 ;l . Ctiaticoku "7

J Island I'oiui.... 107
185
=74
jN. Stratford...
Ammonousuc.
107
i"7
124
7
'-4
Co
.

Hudson River llridyc . .Mljauy. -J tracks..

110
3480
, (it^rhain 47 '47
40 , \V. Paris 38 38
65 J , S. Paris 121
l'urtlandJini;duiisl)'r)jR R Hiram, Me 183 .85 Mcchan's Fall*
Cambria Iron < 1 Johnstown 85 340 . N. Vaniumth.
North Pennsylvania R. R.. Sauctni Creek...
f3-5o) 248 Philad., Wil.Ct Halt. K. R. Ridley Park. -63I 94
l-'- 47)
-J.S.T Rock Isl.iiui Ar>cnal Molinc. III..
Clics. & Ohio R. R - 751
660
Central R. R. of N.J Panirapo. ? tracks 96-3 289
Portland S: Ojjdensh'rg R K
. L'oi'way 158 116
Nurlh Pennsylvania k. R Sellersvillc
Calawissa R. R i
Viaduct 226
Intercolonial RaiUv.iy Co,.., Miraniichi 3la 231. (.lenevait Ithaca R. R.... 'ranylianock... . 102
Risti);ouche 212 SheUlr.ikc t'err 104 lo
Whcclock Hride Co., 'I'erre Haute. Highway., 50 5" , 'IVninan^liuri' QOO QOO
West Hiestcr R, K.,. Ulen Mills So
I

I
80 Senega Car 88 88
North i*ennsylvania R. R .,, Washington Station .

4-
37 \
-M I
129
,
il

-.V3l
- 68
Costa Uica Railway Costa Rica, I

Camden Amlioy R. Hi);htstown M9 - 74

Alc.v.
.<!:

T. Stewart
R..,,

r,ong Island
-
I
>.W
54
841
I.
ij8
Cirard Av., I'xi feet wide."!
- 16 I
I

4 I >;) I City of Pliiladclphia

(

Seven trusses. I''tiiialto ^ 97 I

Chcs. & Ohio R. R., Greenbrier River
4120 )'
( six railroad tracks \
37)
2 13,
Maine Central R, R llnutswick.Me..
2 iSfi.f)/
I
 : ;

GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS,
ACCOHDINO TO WHICH THK

DESIGNS OF CLARKE, REEVES & CO.'S BRIDGES,

m
re
GIVEN IN THIS CIRCULAR,

ARE PROPOSED TO BE CONSTRUCTED.

1. These structures are proportioned to sustain the 3. All workmanship shall be first-class. In work
passage of the heaviest cars and engines in use, for coal, having pin connections, all abutting joints shall be

freight, or passenger traffic, at a speed of not less than planed or turned, and no bars of wroiight-iron having
thirty miles per hour, viz. : two locomotives coupled, nn error of over i-64th of an inch in length between

weighing thirty tons on drivers, in space of twelve feet; pin-holes, or over i-iooth of diameter of pin or hole,

total weight of engine and tender, loaded, sixty-five shall be allowed. In riveted work, all plates and joint
tons each, and followed by the heaviest cars in use, viz. plates shall be square and truly dressed, so as to form
loaded coal cars, weighing twenty tons each, in twenty close joints. Rivet holes shall be spaced accurately
two feet. The iron-work will be so proportioned tiiat and truly opposite. Rivets shall be of the best quality

the above loads, in addition to the weights of the slruo of rivet iron, shall completely fill the holes, and shall

tures themselves, shall not strain the iron over 10,000 have full heads.

pounds per square inch tensile, or 7500 pounils per Chord-links, main ties, and suspension bolts, shall
inch shearing strain, and reducing the strain in com- be die-forged without welds. Screw-bars shall have

pression, in proportion to the ratio of length to diam- threads enlarged beyond diameter of bar, and shall be

eter,by Gordon's formula. fitted with radial nuts anil washers.

2.The iron used under tensile strains shall be of All liars subject to tensile strains may be tested to

tough and ductile quality, and be capable of sustaining 20,000 pounds per square inch, and struck a smart blow
the following tests witli a hammer while under tension ; and if any show
signs of imperfection they shall be rejected.

THCENIX DOUlil.E RICFINED OR "BEST BE.SI" IRON. All the iron -work shall be painted, before leaving the
Works, with one coat of metallic paint and oil. All
ROUND llAK. li INCHES I,.amktKR IIV 12 INCIIKS I.ONC.
machine-cut work shall be covered with white lead and
5?,ooo to 60,000 ll)s. [jcr s(|ii,uc inch. tallow before leaving the Works.
Ultimalc sircnglli,

No perm.-ment set \indcr 25,000 to 30,000 "

" 4. These bridges shall not deflect, under the passage

Reductimi of area at breaking point, average 25 per cent. of a train of locomotives moving at thirty miles per

Elongation "
" " "
i.5 hour, over i-i 200th of their length, and shall return to

Cold bend witliont signs of fractnre, from 90 to 180 degrees. their original camber after the passage of the train.

(4)
 DKSCRIPTION OF PLATBS.
PLATE Wo. 1. PLATE No. 9.
Desic.n a Figs. I, 2, 3, show i\ simple form of Desion H This is our regular pattern of through
girder bridge intended for spans of 25 feet and under. pivot- bridges, with our patent turn-table, of a simple
It consists of two pair of rolled Phcenix beams, of and effective construction. Where a pivot-pier has to
13 or 15 inches deep, according to span, braced to- be specially construe ted, considerable economy will be
gether and resting on (ast-iron i)lates. obtained by carrying uj) a circular wall of masonry, and
Where the headway is extremely limited the arrange- reducing the dei)th of iron ring, as shown in Fig. 35.

I ment sliown in cross-section, Fig. 4, may be iised, which Our [livot-bridges have always given satisfaction and ;

requires a depth below bottom of rail of but 11 inches. we refer particularly to that over the Hudson River
at Albany, belonging to the New York Central and
PLATE No. 2.
DKSKiN H is a trussed girder with two panels, in- Hudson, and the Boston and .Albany Railroads,
tended for spans of 25 to 30 feet, where there is suffi- as a model of a quick-working and substantial pivot-

cient depth below the rail to truss the beams in the bridge.

manner shown. PLATE No. 10.

PLATE No. 3.
This plate shows the details of our patent locking
Desr;n C show's a trussed girder with more than two
and self-centring arrangement for pivot-bridges, the
panels, suited for si)ans of 30 to 75 feet.
operation of which will be best understood by the
PLATE No. /. description of the patent itself, dated June i8, 1872.
Ukskin D. For longer spans than 75 feet we use our
regular pattern of deck bridge, with top choi Is and IMPROVEMENTS IN PIVOT-BRIDGES.
posts made of Piuenix columns, and having side cross
Our invention relates to certainimprovements in pivot-
floor-l)eams. The track stringers can be either of wood, bridges, too fully explained hereafter to need preliminary
as shown in the plate, or of iron, if specially ordered. description the said improvements having jr their object,
;

first, the ready withdrawal of the corner-sui)ports of the

Where jireferred, the tojjs of masonry piers need not bridge, when the latter has to be turned on its pivot, and
be carried above the bottom chords of the iron truss, the ready restoration of these supports when the positior of
and the level of bridge seat at abutments will be the the bridge demands them and second, the self-centiing
;

of the bridge, so that the nice and tedious manipulative ad-

same. In this case the ends of the iron trusses will be justment demanded, in order that the rails of the bridge
supported on vertical Phcjenix columns. may coincide with those of the permaneni track, is rendered
unnecessary.
PLATE No. 5. In the accottipanying drawing, Fig. 37 is a view of a
This plate shows the details of construction of the portion of the end of a pivot-tiridgc Fig. 36, a side view
;

of a portion of one end of the bridge Fig. 38, a plan view

;

deik bridge illustrated in Design 1), J'late No. 4.

of Fig. I and Fig. 39, a perspective view illustrating a part
;

PLATE No. 6. of our invention.

A and A' are two transverse beams at one end of the

Design E. This plan of what is sometimes called a bridge these, together with other transverse beams of like
;

" pony" truss bridge is used for through bridges, where character, supporting the longitudinal beams B, across
the 'depth below rail is somewhat limited, in spans of which extend the ties D for receiving the rails tt a. The
transverse beams A p.re secured to the lower chord-beams
from 30 to 60 feet, and may be carried up to 80 feet at
by suspension-bolts i\ this lower chord forming part of a
points where it is desirable to give the engineer an un- truss-frame of which the pivot-bridge is composed, and of
which F represents a portion of one of the diagonal end
obstructed view over the tops of the trusses. We pre-
posts. To the transverse beam A are hung, by means of
fer, however, at 60 feet span to carry up the trusses and a pin /, a series of links / /, and to the latter are hung,
/' /'

brace them overhead. by means of a pin J, a series of similar links w, and to a

pin passing through the lower ends of the latter series of
PLATE No. 7. links are hung two rollers, //, which are guided vertically
Design F. 'L'iiis is our regular pattern of through by brackets ^ y, secured to the under side of the beams A.
The two sets of links, as will be seen hereafter, form a knee-
bridge. 18 feet and upwards in clear height, and 14 feet
joint to the central piny, of which two rods, GG, are jointed,
in clear width for single track. For doui)le track we the opposite ends of these rods being connected to the lower
recommend two trusses, with a clear width of 26 feet. ends of arms H, which are hung to the transverse beams
A A, and these arms are connected, by a rod, I, to lugs on
PLATE No. 8. a nut J, which is adapted to vertical guides arranged be-
This shows the details of construction of the through tween the two beams A A, the said nut being also connected
by similar appliances to knee-joint links arranged at the
bridges shown .n designs E, F, and the highway bridge opposite corner of the bridge, which is not shown in the
design G, Plate No. 11. drawing. The nut J is controlled by a vertical screw, so
(S)


DESCRIPTION OF PLATES.
confined to suitable bearings //, ser- ed to the beams A A, Although wo have shown and described a pivot-bridge
that while it can be turned easily it is incapable of vertical constructed in a manner which we deem most appropriate,
movement. This screw may be operated by any suitable it should be understood that our improvements arc appli-

mechanism, but we picfer to operate it from a central point
on the pivot-bridfje, and to connect the ojierating mechan-
ism by means of a horizontal shaft extending along the
bridge beneath the ties, one end of the shaft being geared
cable to any pivot-bridge. A change in the operating
mechanism may be demanded in a l)ridge constructed in
a manner ditTering from that described, but the principal
features may remain these features l)eing the knee-joint
;

by bevel-wheels to the screw K at one end of the bridge,
and the opposite end to a similar screw at the opposite end
of the bridge, so that the knee-joint links, at r.li four corners
of the bridge, may be operaii;d simultaneously from one
point. The outer ends of the rails a ii, at each end of the
links, forming corner-supports which can be easily with-
drawn, and ;'ie plates /, 'vhich lender the bridge self-
centring.
We claim as our invention
1. The combination, with a pivot-bridge substantially as

bridge, admit of being raised and lowered by the same described, of knee-joini supports and the mechanism de-
mechanism which operates the knee-joints. Thus the rails scribed, or any equivalent to the same, for operating the
rt a, in Fig. i, are connected by rods jj to the rods I l.and said joints.
these rails are adapted to chairs (i d, which are secured to 2. In combination with a pivot-bridge having movable
the permanent roadway or permanent part of a bridge, and links as supports, we claim plates /, constructed, substan-
which receive the ends of the permanent rails b b of the tially as described, so as to render tiie bridge self-centring.
track, the chair thus insuring the coincidence of the rails
of the pivot-bridge with those of the permanent track. PLATE No. 11.
As seen in the drawing, the bridge is supposed to be De.sign G. This is our usual jjattern of highway
closed, and free for the passage of trains, the rollers / at bridge, with floor l)cams of iron, which may or may
the lower end of the knee-jointed links at each corner of
the bridge bearing in a cavity in the top of a plate /, not be trussed, according to the available depth below
secured to the foundation or pier and, the pins of the knee-
;
roadway. It is constructed exactly like a railway
joint links being in the same vertical line, the links afford
bridge, except in the floor system, and is calculated to
a steady support for the bridge at each of its four corners.
When it is necessary to swing the bridg? round, the screw su.itain a load of from 1500 to 2500 pounds jjer lineal
K, at each end of the bridge, is turned so as to elevate the foot, witli a f''''tion of safety of 5. Teams may cross
nuts J. This consequently draws the rods G and 1 in the
direction of the arrows, and therefore so acts on the knee- these bridges at full speed without doing any mischief.
joint links as to elevate the rollers// in their guides and
;
PLATE No. 12.
tl'.is is continued until the bridge is in the tirst instance

lowered and supported on its centre jjivot only, and after- Design I is an iron highway bridge-, 'a> be used for
ward until the rollers are clear of their bearings. Simul- roads crossing over railways. Fig. 45 is intended for
taneously with this movement of the knee-joint links, the
points where abutments are already built, or where,
outer ends of the rails, owing to iheir connections with the
rods 1 I, were elevated clear of the chairs d d, as seen in from the railway being on a curve, it is not desirai)ie
Fig. 4, and conseciucntly the bridge is free to be turned on to obstruct the view. On
the right side of Fig. 45 a
its pivot. In restoring the bridge to its original position,
it is turned round until the rollers //of the knee-joint
more econo'viicai construction than the ordinary stone
links are above tl^c cavity of the foundation-plate /. It is abutment is suggested.
very rarely, however, that tiie bridge can be arrested in its
movement at a point where the said rollers are directly PLATE No. 13.
above the centre of the said cavity but as soon as tlie
; Design K shows our method of constructing wrought-
screws K are operated to straighten the knee-joint links, iron piers for bridges, viaducts, etc. Tiiey are made
and the rollers q begin to bear upon the plrtes /, the weight
on r.ie rolleis will induce them to descend into the cavities of four Phoenix columns, braced together as shown, and
of the plates, and hence, as the straightening of the knee- secured at the joints by our i)atent system of connec-
joints is continued, the bridge will be slightly turned, until*
tions.
the rollers have r.rrived at the most depressed portion of
the cavities ir, tlie plates, and there remain while the As tlie lengths and weights of spans increase, we in-
st.;i'.ghtcning of the knee-jointed links is continued until crease the dimensions of the columns and braces, but
their pin^ are in the same vertical line, as shown in Fig. i.

.\ftcr the bridge had adjusted itself in the manner described

t!ie same ^;eneral form of construction is followed for
duiing the picliminary straightening of the links, and this all lengths of spans.
straightening was continued, the rails a a on the bridge
descended until they rested in and were contined laterally
PLATE N(j. 14.

by the shoes d d of the pen lanent track. It will be seen, De,sI(;n I, shows a bridge on iron [liers, intended for
therefore, that by connecting these rails ati to the mechan- I'.ie crossing of a smail stream or road, where good
ism which operates the knee-joints, the said rails are ele-
vated out of the chair simultaneously with the releasing ot
stone foi masonry cannot easily be got. The jjiers can
the bridge from its corner-bearings, and when the knee- be biiiit of s])lit bouldeis, or of concrete, if stone
joints become the corner-bearings the rails are lowered cannot be had; and, as they are biirieil in the embank-
into the hairs, and their coincidence with the rails of the
'

permanent track is thereby insured. The accidents which ments, concrete will answer as well as stone, 'i'hese

have frei[uently occurred through the non-coinciding of piers can be coped with stone or iron.
the rails of a pivot-bridge with those of the ijerm.incnt
trajk are thus prevented.
Design M shows a wrought-iron viaduct resting on
The knee-joint bearings at the corner of the bridge pos- cast-iron screw piies, and suitable for crossing the wide
sess this important advantage, that they can be operated river bottoms of the western and southern States, where
with com|)aratively little exertion, either through the me-
dium of the mechanism described or any equivalent oper- stone is scarce, anil where a wide water-way oust be
ating devices. permanently maintained.


APPENDIX No. 1.

PH(ENIXVILLE BRIDGE -WORKS.

REPRINTED FROM LirPLXCOTTS MAGAZINE FOR JANUARY, 1873.

*'assi:miu.iN( iin.i; i:ni)I;k siii:i.

In a grave). ml in Watcrtown, a village near Boston, I

the changes of our manner and method of bridge-build-
M.iss.iihusetts, there is a tombstone ( immemorating ing that it .vill not be a loss of time to investigate the
the claims of the departed worthy who lies below to \
present condition of our abilities in this most useful
the eternal gratitude of posterity. The inscription is I
branch of engineering skill.

dated in the early part of this century (about iSio), In the usual archiTiological classification of eras the
but the name of him who was thus immortalized has Stone Age precedes that of Iron, and in the history of
f.ided like the date of his deatli from my memory, while bridge-building the same secjuence has been preserveil.
tlie deed for which he was distinguislied, and which Though the knowledge of working iron was acquired
was re( orded upon his tombstone, remains clear. " He by many nations at a ]ire-historic period, yet in quite
built the fimious bridge over the Charles River in this modern times witiiin tliis century, even the inven-
town," says the record. Tiie diaries Ri\er is here a ion of new processes and the experience gained of
small stream, about twenty to thirt\- feet wide, and the new methods have so completely revolutionized this
bridge was a simple wooden structure. branch of industry, anil given us such a mastery over
Doubtless in its day this structure was considered an this material, enabling us to apply it to such new uses,
engineering feat woi thy of such ])osthumous immortality that for the future the real Age of Iron will date from
as is gained by an epitaph, anel afforded such conveni- the i)resent century.
ence for transportation as was neetletl by the commer- The knowledge of the arch as a method of construc-
cial activity' of that era. From that time, however, to tion with stone or brick both of them materials aptly
this, the ( hangcs which have occurred in our commer- fitted for resistance under pressure, but of comparatively
cial and industrial metliods are so fully indicated by no tensile strength enabled the Romans to surpass all
(7)
 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS,

nations that had preceded them in the course of his- after a few years destroyed by the emperor Adrian, lest

tory, in building bridges. The bridge across the Dan- it should afford a means of passage to the barbarians,
ube, erected by Apoiiodorus, the architect of Trajan's and its ruins are still to be seen in Lower Hungary.

Cohunn, was Vhe largest bridge built by the Romans. With the advent of railroads, bridge-building became
It was more than three hundred feet in height, com- even a greater necessity than it had ever been before,
posed of twenty-one arches resting upon twenty piers, and the use of iron has enabled engineers to grapple
and was about eight hundred feet in length. It was with and overcome difficulties which only fifty years

THE LYMAN VIAUUL T.

ago would have been considered hopelessly insurmount- strain, and death and disaster shock the community
able. In thismodern use of iron advantage is taken into a sense of the inherent defects of these materials
of its great tensile strength, and many iron bridges, for such structures.
over which enormous trains of heavily-loaded cars pass The introduction of the railroad, has brought about
hourly, look as though they were spun from gossamer also another change in the bridge-building of modern
threads,and yet are stronger than any structure of wood times, compared with that of all the ages which have
or stone would be. preceded this nineteenth century. The chief bridges
Another great advantage of an iron bridge over one of ancient times were bui!.; uj great public conveniences,
constructed of wood or stone is the greater ease with upon thoi (highways over which there was a large amount
wh! jh it can, in every part of it, be constantly observed, of travel, and consequently were near the cif'es or com-
and every foiling part replaced. Whatever material mercial centres which attracted such travel, and were
may be used, every edifice is always subject to the therefore placed where they were seen by great num-
slow disintegrating influence of time and the e.-ments. bers. Now, however, the connection between the
In every such edifice as a bridge, use is a ] ocess of chief commercial centres is made by the railroads, and
constant weakening, which, if not as constant! guarded these penetrate immense distances, through compara-
against, must inevitably, in time, lead to its destruction. tively unsettled districts, in order to bring about the
In a wooden or stone bridge a beam affected by dry needed distribution; and in consequence many of the
rot or a stone weakened by the efi'ects of frost may l'-; great railroad bridges are built in the most unfrequented
hidden from the inspection of even the most vigilant spots, and are unseen by the numerous passengers who
observer until, when the process has gone far enough, traverse them, ur:onscious that they are thus easily
the bridge suddenly gives way under a not unusual passing over specimens of engineering skill which sur-
 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS.

, lest many of the sights

pass, as objects of intelligent interest, driven by a hot blast and kept burning night and day.
rians, they may be traveling to see. The iron, asbecomes melted, flows to the bottom
it

T-
The various processes by which the iron is prepared of the furnace, and is drawn off below in a gloiving

came to be used in bridge-building are many of them as new stream. Into the top of the blast-furnaces the ore and
efore, as is the use of this coal are dumped, having been raised to the top by an
rapple material for this elevator worked by a blast of air. It is curious to

years prrpose, and it will notice how slowly the experience was gathered from
which has resulted the ability to work iron as it is done
here. Though even at the first settlement of this coun-
try the forests of England had been so much thinned by
their consumption in the form of charcoal in her iron
industry as to make a demand for timber from this
country a flourishing trade for the
new settlers, yet it was not until
161 2 that a patent was granted to
Simon Sturtevant for smelting iron
by the consumption of bituminous
coal. Another patent for the same
invention was granted to John
Ravenson the next year, and in
1619 another to Lord Dudley;
yet the process did not come into
general use jntil nearly a hundred
years later.
The blast for the furnace is

driven by two enormous engines,

each of three hundred horse-power.
nLAST-Fl'RNACr.S.
The blast used here is, as we have
not be amiss to spend a few moments in examining them said, a hot one, the air being heated by the consumption
some of ofthe gases evolved from the material itself. The gradual
before presenting to our readers illustrations of
the most remarkable structures of this kind. Taking a steps by which these successive modifications were intro-
train by the Reading Railroad from Philadelphia, we duced are an evidence of how slowly industrial processes
arrive, in about an hour, at
Phcenixville, in the Schuylkill
Valley, where the Phoenix Iron-
and Bridge-Works are situated.
In this establishment we can
follow the iron from its original
condition of ore to a finished
bridge ; and it is the only es-
tablisliment in this country, and
most probably in the world,
wliere this can be seen.
These works were established
in 1790. In 1827 they came
into the possession of the late
David Reeves, who by his en- nUMPlNC. OKK AND COAI. INTO llI.AST-Fl'RNACKS.
ergy and enterprise increased
their capacity to meet the growing demands of the 1..V '-"^n perfectedby the collective experience of gene-
time, until they reached their present extent, employ- rations, and show us how much we of the present day owe
ing constantly over fifteen hundred hands. to our predecessors. From the earliest times, as among
The first process is melting the ore in the blast- the native smiths of .Vfrica to-day, the blast of a bellows
furnace. Here the ore, with coal and a flux of lime- has been used in working iron to increase the heat ofthe
stone, is piled in and subjected to the heat of the fires. combustion by a more plentiful supply of oxygen. The
10 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS.

blast-furnace is supposed to have been first used in Bel- The view of the engines which pump the blast will

gium, and to have been introduced into England in give an idea of the immense power which the Phcenix
1558. Next came the use of bituminons coal, urged company has at command. Twice every day the fur-
with a blast of cold air. But it was not until 1829 that nace is tapped, and the stream of liquid iron flows out
Neilson, an into moulds
Englishman, formed in the

conceived the sand, making

idea of heating the iron into
the air of the pigs so
blast, and car- calleil from a
ried it out at fancied resem-
t he Muirkirk blance to the
furnaces. I n form of these
that year he animals. 'I'his

obtained a makes the first

l)atent for this proce.ss, and

process, and in many smelt-
found that he ing establish-
could from the mei.cs this is

liLKVATlJK.
same quantity all that is
IIINNINC; METAl. INTO PUIS.
of fi'*' make done, the iron
three times as much iron. His patent mad "''
<itxy in this form being sold and entering into the general
rich : one single case of infringement he received a
in consumption.
cheque for damages for one hundred and fifty thousand The next i)rocess is "boiling," which is a modifica-
pounds. In his method, however, he used an extra tion of "puddling," and is generally used in the best
fire for heating the air of his blast. In 1837 the idea iron-works in this country. The process of puddling
of heating the air for was invented by Henry
the blast by the gases Cort, an Englishman,
generated in the pro- and patented by him in
cess was first practically 1783 and 1784, as a
introduced by M. Fa- new process for '
' shing-
ber Dufour at Wasser- ling, welding,and man-
alfilgen in the kingdom ufacturing iron and steel
of Wiirtemburg. into bars, plates, and
Ip this country, char- rods of purer quality
coal was at first used and in larger quantity

universally for smelting than heretofore, by a

iron, anthracite coal more effectual applica-

being considered unfit tion of fire and ma-

for the purpose. In chinery." For this
1820 an unsuccessful invention Cort has been
attempt to use it was called "the finthcr of
made Mauch Chunk.
at the iron-trade of the
In 1833, Frederick W. British nation," and it

Geisenhainer of Schuyl- is estimated that his in-

kill obtained a patent vention has, during this
for the use of the hot THK iiN(iINl:-Kt)C>M. century, given employ-
blast with anthracite, ment to six millions of
and in 1835 produced the first iron made with this pro- persons, and increased the wealth of Great Britain by
cess. In 1841 C. E. Detmold adapted the consumption three thousand millions of dollars. In his experiments
of the gases produced by the smelting to the use of for perfecting his process Mr. Lort spent his fortune,
anthracite; and since then it has become quite general, and though it proved so valuable, he died poor, having
and has caused an almost incalculable saving to the been involved by the ^^overnment in a lawsuit concern-
community in the price of iron. ing his patent, which beggared him. Six years before
 PHOiNlXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS. II

his death, the government, as an acknowledgment of To carry on this process properly requires great skill
their wrong, granted him a j early pension of a thou- and judgment in the puddler. The heat necessarily
sand dollars, and at his death this miserly recompense generated by the operation is so great that very few
was rediK ' to his widow, to six hinidred and twenty- persons have thp physical endurance to stand it. So
five dolla'j. great is it that the clothes upon the person frequently
When iron is simply melted and run into any mould catch fire. Such a strain upon the physical powers
i t s texture i s naturally leads
granular, and those subjected
it is so brittle to it to indulge
as to be quite The
in excesses.
unreliable for perspiration
any use requir- which flows from
ing much tensile the puddlers in
strength. The streams while
process of pud- engaged in their
dling consisted work is caused
in stirring the by the natural
molten iron run effort of their
out in a puddle, bodies to pre-
and had the ef CAKKYINi; THU IKON UALLS serve themselves
feet of so chang- from injury by
ing its atomic arrangement as to render the process of keeping their normal temperature. Such a consump-
rolling it more efficacious. The ,-.o';ess of boiling is tion of the fluids of the body causes great thirst,and
considered an improvement upon this. The boiling- the exhaustion of the labor, both bodily and mental,
furnace is an oven heated to an intense heat by a fire leads often to the excessive use of stimulants. In fact,
urged with a blast. The cast-iron sides are double, and the work is too laborious. Its conditions are such that
a constant circulation of water is kept passing tlirough no one should be subjected to them. The necessity,
the chamber thus made, in order to preserve the struc- however, for judgment, experience, and skill on the
ture from fusion
by the heat. The
inside is lined
with fire-brick
covered with
metallic ore and
slag over the
bottom and
sides, and then,
the oven being
RtlTARV SgllEEZFH.
charged with the
pigs of iron, the part of the operator has up to this time prevented the
heat is let on. introduction of machinery to take the place of human
BOILlNG-FUKNACr. The i)igs melt, labor in this process. The successful substitution in
and the oven is modern times of machines, for jjerforming vprin-.^

filled with molten iron. The puddler constantly stirs operations which formerly seemed to require the intel-
this mass with a bar let through a hole in the door, until ligence and dexterity of a living being for their execu-
the iron boils up, or "ferments," as it is called. This tion, justifies the expectation that the study now being
fermentation is caused by the combustion of a portion given to the organization of industry will lead to the
of the carbon in the iron, and as soon as the excess of invention of machines whicli will obviate the necessity
consumed, the cinders and slag sink to the bot-
this is for human suffering in the process of puddling. Such
tom of the oven, leaving the semi-fluid mass on the a consummation would be an advantage to all classes
top. Stirring this about, the puddler forms it into concerned. The attempts which have been made in
balls of such a size as he can conveniently handle, this direction have not as yet proved entirely successful.
which are taken out and carried on little cars, made to In the squeezer the glowing ball of white-hot iron is

receive them, to "the squeezer." placed, and forced with a rotary motion through a
 12 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS.

spiral passage, the diameter of which is constancy di- direction the first rolled iron beams over nine inches
minishing. Tlie eff' I
t of tliis operation is to squeeze deep that were ever made were produced at these works.
all the slag and cinder out of the ball, and force the The process cf rolling toughens the iron, seeming to
iron to assume the shape of a short thick cylinder called draw out its fibres; and iron that has been twice rolled
"a bloom." This i s considered fi t

process was former- for ordinary uses.

ly performed by For the various
striking the ball parts of a bridge,
of iron repeatedly however, where
with a tilt-hammer.' great toughness and
The bloom isnov tensile strength are
re-heated and sub- necessary, as well as
jected to the process uniformity of tex-
of rolling. "The ture, the iron is

rolls" are heavy rolled a third time.

cylinders of cast- The bars are there-
iron placed almost fore cut again into
in contact, and re- pieces, piled, re-
volving rapidly by heated, and rolled
steam-power. The again. A bar of
bloom is caught be- iron which has been
tween these rollers, rolled twice is
and passed back- formed from a pile
ward and forward of fourteen separate
until it is pressed pieces of iron that
into a flat bar, ave- have been rolled
raging from four to only once, or
six inches in width, "muck bar," as it

and about an inch is called ; while the

and a half thick. thrice-rolled bar "s

These bars are then made from a pile of

cut into s li o r t eight separate pieces
lengths, piled, heated again in a furnace,and re-rolled. of do'ihle-rolled iron. If, therefore, one of the original
After going througli this process they form the bar iron pieces of iron has any flaw or defect, it will form only

of commerce. From the iron "educed into this form a hundred and twelftii part of the thrice-rolled bar. The
the various parts used in the construction of iron bridges uniformity of texture and the toughness of the bars
are made by being rolled into shape, the rolls through which have been thrice rolled are so great that they
which the may be
I'lHiTii; various twisted,
^i'iiiii''.;
parts pass cold, into a
having knot with-
grooves of out showing
the form it any signs of
is desired fracture.
to give to The l)ar of
the pieces. iron, wheth-
These er hot or
COLI> SAW rolls, when cold, are
, HOT SAW.
they arc sawn to the
driven by steam, obtain this generally from a boiler various required lengths by the hot or cold saws shown
placed over the heating- or puddling-furnace, and in the illustrations, which revolve with great rapidity.
heated by tlie waste gases from the fun. ace. This ar- For the columns intended to sustain the compressive
rangement was first made by John Griffie, the super- thrust of heavy weights a form is used in this esiablish-
intendent of the Phoenix Iron-Works, under whose ment of their own design^ and to which the name of

I-
'
i
 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS. 3

the "
PhcEiiix column" has been given. They are bridges mostly with hand-labor. In consequence also
tubes made from four or from eight sections rolled in of this method of working, American iron bridges,
tlie usual way and riveted together at their flanges. despite the higher price of our iron, en successfully
(See Plate XV.) When necessary, such column: ;,.v. compete Canada with bridges of English or Belgian
in
joined together by cast-iron joint-blocks, with circular construction. The American iron bridges are lighter
tenons which fit into the hollows of each tube. than those of other nations, but their absolute strength
To join two bars to resist a strain of tension, links is as great, since the weight which is saved is all dead
or e y e- weight, and not necessary to the solidity of the struc-
bars are ture. The same difference is displayed here that is

used from seen in our carriages with their slender wheels, com-
three t o pared with the lumbering heavy wagons of European
six inches construction.
wide, and Before any practical work upon the construction of a
as long ns bridgeis begun, the data and specifications are given,

may be and a plan of the structure is drawn, whether it is for a

needed. railroad or for ordinary travel, whether for a double or
At each single track, whether the train is to pass on top or
Kivr.riNi; A column. end is an below, and so on. The calculations and plans are then
enlarge- made for the use of such dimensions of iron that the
ment with a hole to receive a pin. In this way any strain upon any part of the structure shall not exceed a
number of bars can be joined together, and the result certain maximum, usually fixed at ten thousand pounds
of numerous experiments made at this establishment to the square inch. As the weight of the iron is known,
has shown that under sufficient strain they wiil part as and its tensile strength is estimated at sixty thousand
)ften in the body of the bar as at the joint. The heads pounds per square inch, this estimate, which is techni-
upon these bars are made by a process known as die- cally called "a factor of safety" of six, is a very safe
forging. The bar is heated to a white heat, and under one. In other words, the bridge is planned and so
a die worked by constructed that
hydraulic pres- i n supporting
sure the head is its own weight,
shaped and the together with
hole struck at any load o f
one operation. locomo ves t i

Tliis method of or cars which

joining by pins can be placed
is much more upon it, it shall

relial)le than not be sub-

welding. The jected to a
pins are made strain over
o f cold-rolled one - s i Xth of
sliafting, and fit i t s estimated
FUKNAfE AND IIYlJHAl'Llf

to a nicety. strength.

The general view of the machine-shop, which covers made, working drawings are pre-
After the plan is

more than an acre of ground, shows the various ma- pared and the process of manufacture commences.
chines and tools by which iron is planed, turned, The eye-bars, when made, are tested in a testing-
drilled, and handled as though it were one of the soft- machine at double the strain which by any possibility
est of materials. Such a machine-shop is one of the they can be put to in the bridge itself. The elasticity

wonders of Most of the operations per-

this century. of the iron is such that, after beirg submitted to a ten-
formed there, and all of the tools with which they are sion of about thirty thousand pounds to the square inch,

done, are due entirely to modern invention, many of it will return to its original dimensions; while it is so

tliem within the last ten years. By means of this aj)- tougii that the bars, as large as two inches in diameter,

plication of machines great accuracy of work is obtained, can be bent double, when cold, without showing any
and each part of an iron bridge can be exactly dupli- sigr.s of fracture. Having stood these tests, the parts
cated if necessary. This method of construction is Of the bridge are considered fit to be used.
1^'

entirely American, the English still Iniilding their iron When completed, the parts are put together or

I
 14 PH(.ENIXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS.

"asseniblcil," as the technical phrase is, in order to Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, near a romantic spot
see that tiiey are right in length, etc. Then they are known as Hawksnest. About two hundred yards below
marked with letters or numbers, according to the work- this bridge is a waterfall, and while the staging was still

ing and shipped to the spot where the bridge is

jiian, in use for its construction, the river, which is very
to be permanently erected. Before the erection can treacherous, suddenly rose about twenty feet in a few
be begun, however, a staging or scaffolding of wood, hours, and became a roaring torrent.
strong enough to support the iron structure until it The method of making all the parts of a bridge to

is finished, has to be raised on the spot. When the fit exactly, and securing the ties by pins, is peculiarly

bridge is a large one, this staging is of necessity an im- American. Th.e plan still followed in Europe is that

portant and costly structure. An illustration on the next of using rivets, which makes tiie erection of a bridge
page shows the staging erected for the support of the take much more time, and costs, consecpiently, much
New River bridge in West Virginia, on the line of the more. A riveted lattice bridqe, one hundred and sixty

VIKW OF MACHINK-Sllnl'.

feet in span, would require ten or twelve days for its The bridge over the Illinois River at La Salle, on the
erection, wiiile one of the Pluenixville bridges of this Illinois Central Railroad, shows the style of bridge
size has been erected in ciglit and a half hours. technically called a "deck" bridge, in which the train
The view of tlie Albany bridge will show the style is on tlie to]). This bridge consists of eighteen spans
which is technicall)- called a "tlirougii" bridge, having of one hmulred and sixty feet ea( h, and cost one hun-
the track at the level of the lower chords. 'l"iiis view dred and eighty thousand dollars. Tlie bridge over
of the bridge is taken from the west side of tlie Hud- the Kennebec River, on the line of the Maine Central
son, near the Delavan House in .Mbanv. The curved Railroad, at .'Vugusta, Maine, is anotlier instance of a
portion crosses the Albany basin, or outlet of the Erie "through" bridge. It cost seventy-five thousand
Canal, and consists of seven spans of seventy-three feet dollars, has five spans of one hundred ami eiglity-five

each, one of sixty-tliree, and one of one hundred and feet each, and was built to rejilace a wooden deck
ten. That part of tiie bridge which crosses the river bridge which was carried away by a freshet.
consists of four spans of one hundred and eighty-five The bridge on the Portland and Ogdensburg Rail-
feet each, and a draw two hundred and seventy-four road which crosses the Saco River is a very general
feet wide. The iron-work in this liridge tost about type of a through railway bridge. It < onsists of two
three hundred and twenty thousand dollars. spans of one hundred and eighty-five feet each, and
 PHiENlXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS,
>S

( ost twenty thousand dollars. The New River bridge and fifty feeteach, and two others of seventy-five feet
in West Vir},nnia consists of two spans of two hiinda-d each. Its cost was ahout seventy thousand dollars.

.<)
v^m.^^sm^sm.
NliW KIVHR IIKIDGR ON ITS STAGING.

riie Lyman
Viaduct, on the Connecticut Air-line dred and thirty-five feet high and eleven hundred feet
Railway, at East Hampton, Connecticut, is one hun- long.

limin.I-. AT AI.nAN\.

These specimens will show the general chanicter of [

employed, hut its and unreliability have led
brittleness
the iron bridges ercted in this country. When iron :
to its rejection for the main portions of bridges. E.\-
ivas first used in constructions of this kind, cast iron was perience has also led the best iron-bridge-builders of
 i6 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS.

America to quite generally employ girders with parallel degrees. This form takes the least material for the re-

ton and bottom members, vertical posts (except at the quired strength.
ends, where they are made inclined toward the centre The safety of a bridge depends qnite as much upon
of the span), and tie-rods inclined at nearly forty-five the design and proportions of its details and coiinec
-

.^*i

Ill'

LA bALLK IIKIW;!'..

tions as upon its general shape. The strain which will come upon the wheels, axles, and moving parts of
compress or extend the ties, chords, and other parts carriages, cars and machinery. Yet experience and
can be calculated with mathematical exactness. But judgment have led the best builders to a singular uni-

the strainscoming upon the connections are very often formity in their treatment of these parts. Each bridge
indeterminate, and no mathematical formula has yet has been an experiment, the lessons of which have
been found for them. They are like the strains which been studied and turned to the best effect.

BKIUGK AT AUGUSTA, MAINI!.

There is no doubt that iron bridges can be made leads us to depend more upon the action of self-interest
perfectly safe. Their margin is greater than that of and the inherent trustworthiness of mankind when in-

the boiler, the axles, or the rail. To make them safe, dulged with freedom of action. Though at times this
European governments depend upon rigid rules, and confidence may seem vain, and "rings" in industrial
careful inspection to see that they are carried out. In pursuits, as in politics, appear to corrupt the honesty
this country government inspection is not relied on which forms the very foundation of freedom, yet their
with such certainty, and the spirit of our institutions influence is but temporary, and as soon as the best
 PHCENIXVILLE JiRIDGE- WOUk'S. 7

public sentiment becomes convinced of the need for toward an industrial, social, and political organization
their removal their influence is destroyed. Such evils in which the best intelligence and the most trjstworthy
are necessary incidents of our transitional movement honesty shall control these interests for the best advan-

tage of society at large, in liic meanliinc, tiie best ^

taiiily do not desire to waste their i.ioney or to render
security for the safety of iron bridges is to be found in themselves liable to damages from the breaking of their
the -interest
self-i of the railway corporations, who cer- bridges, and who consequently will employ for such

I'HtlCNIX WiiUKS

constructions those whose reputation has been fairly bridges of iron which shall in all possible contingencies
earned, and whose character is such that reliance can be safe, and there is no excuse for a penny-wise-and-
be placed in the honesty of their work. Experience pound-foolish policy when it leads to disaster.
has given the world the knowledge needed to build Edward Howland.
3
 :

APPENDIX No. 2.

LOADS AND STRAINS OF BRIDGES.

A paper presented by JOHN GRIFFEN and THOS. 0. OLABKE, OivU Engineen, memben of the American Society

of Oivil Engineers, at tlie Fourth Annual Oonrention of the Society, held at Ohioago, June 6 and 6, 1872.

How to obtain uniformity of strength is the problem parts of every span, so that one part shall not give way
to be solved by the design of iron railway bridges. before another.
The strength of the weakest bridge, and of tlie weakest The standard of strength must finally be determined
part of that bridge, measures the strength of all the by the engineer for each particular case. It would be
bridges on a line of railway. The breaking of a single useless to lay down any rules upon this point. F<arh
floorbeam may wreck a train, and kill and wound man must be free to settle it for himself But when he
many persons; and it is no consolation to know that has decided it, and says, "I will adopt a margin of
all the other floor beams, tie rods, etc., of other bridges safety of three, four, five, or six," as the case may be,
of the same line, have a superabundance of strength. he wishes to feel certain that all his spans, and all their
The stn^nglh of a bridge results from the following parts, 'form no exception to this rule. Uniformity of
conditions: strength will then be attained; how much strength to
The heaviest loads to which it can be subjected. give will be always an open question.
The maximum strains resulting from those loads. I. What are the actual loadsto which railway bridges
The sizes of the tensile and compressive members, are subjected ?

and hence their strains per square inch of area. In Table No. i, accompanying this paper, will be
The available strength of those members depending found a list of the weights and dimensions of the prin-

upon First. The quality of the iron of which they are cipal types of locomotives now used upon American
made. Second. The cross-section of the struts. Third. railways, divided into three classes.
The mode of forming the connections. The first includes those engines of exceptional di-
Errors of design have been made in respect to all mensions and weights which are used for pushing trains
these points. up heavy grades. Fortunately, their speed is slow.
First. A uniform load per lineal foot has been as- The second heavy freight and coal
class includes
sumed for all spans, short and long alike, while the engines, whose average speed is ten to twelve miles an
actual load is greater for short, and less for long, spans, hour.
and is always in excess of the general load upon certain The third class the common form of four-driver i)as-

parts, such as floor beams. senger engines, which cross bridges at from twenty to
Second. No distinction has been made between the fifty miles an hour.
effects of the dead load of the structure and the moving Class four contains the various kinds of cars, pas-
or live loac f trains, suddenly applied and accom- senger, freight, and coal.
panied by s ^cks and vibrations. The following points may be discovered from inspec-
Third. The margin of safety between the allowed tion of this table
strain and the disabling limit of the iron has been over- That the weights of engines and loaded tenders aver-
estimated, as the margin of safety of the weakest part age from 2300 to 2700 pounds per foot of track occu-
measures that of the whole. pied, and that the weights of tenders, separately, are
Fourtli. Sufficient distinction has not been made in but little less.

specifications between a tough and elastic iron, and That, owing to the concentrated weight of engine
a hard and brittle quality, if the ultimate breaking over drivers, the loads carried by spans of less than 100
strength of both were alike. feet will exceed these weights. As there are so many
Fifth. The upon compressive mem-
strains allowed different types of engines we must select one of average
bers are not based upon any definite knowledge of their !
dimensions and weight, leaving provision to be made
ultimate powers of resistance. ! for the passage of exceptionally heavy engines in the
These points will be considered in turn, and sugges- I
margin of safety which is to be fixed by the engineer
tions will be made toward a practice which shall result i
of the bridge.
in uniformity of strength in all lengths of span, in all Take, therefore, an engine whose total weight with
(18)
 :

PH(ENIXVJLLE BRIDGE-WORKS. 9

loaded tender is 135,000 puunds, occupying with pilot

fifty feet of track, ''

= 3500 pounds per foot:

distance occupied by wheel base of engine and tender

alone is 41 1^ feet, =1000 pounds per foot;

41.5
distance occupied on track by the concentrated weight
over drivers, say 17 feet, and weight 60,000 pounds,
60,000
- :^ 3530 pounds per foot; if the driving-wheel

60,000
,
base is 15, = 4000 pounds per foot , ,
;
.,
if
, , .

the driv-

ing-wheel base is 13 feet,

' =; 5000 pounds per
13
foot. This will give us the following loads

Spans 13 feet ami under .

 20 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE- WORKS.

safety shall be six, meaning that the working strain shall Imperfection of workmanship should not be found in
be one-sixth of the ultimate breaking strain. our American bridges which are made by machine tools.

A little consideration will show that the true margin In riveted lattice and plate girders it is a serious cause'
of safety is the difference between the working strain of the actual strength falling below that given by cal-
and that strain which would give the iron a permanent i
culations. Giving a margm of strength beyond what
set and unfit it for use, either by crippling *he com- |
seems to be required, is, as we have stated, a recogni-
pressive members or by stretcliing the tension members tion of the fact that iron bridges will decay like all J

so that the bridge would become distorted and "sag" human works. '

below a level line. Even before this point was reached, I

But it is not so generally known that if a bridge has
the iron in tension would have become "overstrn' led," not enough iron in certain parts, although built of good
j

causing its particles to sufter permanent derai ^jnient. j

iron and put together strongly, it will wear out under
Although this "set," as il 's called, does not diminish a heavy traffic, just as locomotives, cars, and rails wear
j

the ultimate capacity of the iron to support a dead out. One or two instances will illustrate this. Where
load, yet, as has been pointed out by Stoney, when the pin connections are used, owing to the concentration
"stretch" is taken out of an originally tough piece of of strains which comes upon a pin, it is necessary to
iron, it becomes brittle. It is well known that a chain "reinforce," as termed, the plates of iron upon
it is
\i\ j

that has been overstrained in testing is liable to snap i

which the ])ins and thus increase the bearing sur-
bear,
off with less than its proof load. j
face until the pressure is reduced to 7000 01 8000 pounds
wrought iron under tension
'

This limit of elasticity of per square inch, or else the pin will cut into the iron,
is that point at which the elongations cease to be in or the iron into the pin.
uniform proportion to equal additions of load, and In the Crumlin viaduct, as originally built with pin
coincides very nearly with the point at which visible connections, this principle was not recognized, enough
set takes j)lace. It does not vary much from one-half beaming surface was not given, and the pin-holes became
of the ultimate sti'ength of the iron. Common English enlarged. The pins were removed, and the struts
plate, bar, and angle iron, of an ultimate strengtli of ;
riveted to the chords, and this example is frequently
from twenty to twenty-two tons per square inch, has |
quoted to show the superiority of riveted over pin
an elastic limit of not over ten tons per square inch. connections, while in reality it only shows imperfect
The highest grades of English and American double ;
design.
refined bar iron of an ultimate strength of 55,000 to Another still more example can be found
striking
60,000 pounds per square incii, have an elastic limit of nearer home. On Reading railway, plate girder
the
from 25,000 to 30,000 pounds per square inch hence a ;
|
bridges of 25 feet span and under were originally pro-
working strain of io,ooo i^ounds per square inch gives i
portioned for a rolling load of two tons per foot of
|^ an available margin of strength or safety, or whatever track. It was found that under the heavy traffic of that
term ve may prefer to call it, of from two to three, j
road, the webs of these girders at the delivery end
instead of six. !
crushed or buckled. They have since been rebuilt, or
Whatever the engineer selects, it shoukl be enough strengthened and proportioned for a rolling load of four
to allow for i. I'ossible inequality of material. 2. tons per foot of track, and now wear very well.
?;i
Imperfection of workmanship. And 3. The effects of IV. Whatever be the adopted ?nargin of safety, it
deterioration, arising boih from use and from natural would appear that a larger margin should be allowed in
causes. the case of hard and brittle iron than in that of a tough
A dread of inequality of material is the reason why and ductile quality. But tliis is just what most bridge
engineers prefer wrought iron to ( ast iron or to steel specifications do not do.
for the construction of bridges. If the enginei'r could The experiments of Kirkaldy have clearly shown that
always depend upon getting such a tpiality of cast iron a high ultimate breaking strength may be due to the
as the late General Rodman made for artilier}-, which, iron being tough, or r.-.erely to its being hard and un-
was worked up to a tensible strain of 27,000 pounds yielding. In the former case, it will "draw down"
per square inch, and was 1 ally more like cast steel than and stretch considerably before breaking; in the latter,
iron, his objections to the use of cast iron would vanish. will snap short off with but
it little elongation and con-
It has been stated that in experiments '.poii the traction of area at the point of fracture. One is tough,
material for the St. Louis bridge, some steel belts, the other is brittle, and yet both may have an equally
5^ inch diameter, broke with 30,000 pounds per great ultimate strength. How shall we know them
square inch, and no elongation ; while small bolts i/^^ apart ?
inch diameter, of the same material, bore 100,000 The required iron should not be too soft, the limit
pounds per square inch, and elongated consideralilv. of elasticity should not fall below 25,000 pounds per


PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS. 21

square Inch before showing visible set. The breaking to an angle of 45 degrees cold if it stands without ;

strength should run from 55,000 to 60,000 pounds per any signs of fracture the heat is passed as good, if not,
square inch. A bar a foot long, and of one squar'- it is rejected.
inch area, should elongate at least 15 per cent, before The iron that has passed this test is piled, charged
breaking. in a heating furnace, heated and rolled into flat bars.
As it is not always easy to measure accu-ately the This is called No. 2 bar, and is sold as "Phoenix
contracted area at the point of rupture, there is no Best." The iron so rolled is again cut, piled, and
simpler nor better mode of testing ductility than by rolled into the finished bar, and
is called No. 3 bar,

bending the bar cold, and such a bar should bend and is the iron sold by the Phoenix Iron Co. as " Phoenix
double, cold, without any signs of fracture. Best Best." A bar of this iron, 25^ inches diameter,
Mr. G. Berkeley, in his valuable paper read before has been tent cold so that the sides came in close con-
the London Institution of Civil Engineers at the session tact withoutshowing the least signs of fracture.
of 1870, states his experience with English irons as It should be borne in mind that the object of re-
follows:
"Experience extending over twenty years, working iron is to refine it by getting rid of the surplus
and comprising many thousands of experiments, has cinder and scoria, making the iron firm '
. texture and
proved that a quality of iron can be obtained at the of a more uniform quality. This uniformity of quality
current prices of the day, which will bear the following results from the fact that the pile from which a bar of
tests: No. 2 is made consists of fourteen No. i bars, and the

" For plates, an average breaking strength of 20 tons pile of No. 3 of eight No. 2, so that if by chance an
per square inch, and a minimum of 19 tons per square inferior muck bar had been used, it would form but
inch, and an average stretch of 1 inch in twelve lineal jfr part of the No. 3, or " Best Best" bar.
= 8.33 per cent. All iron improves up to the third working, but if the
" For angle and T irons, an average breaking strength quality of the pig is not suitable no amount of working
of 22 tons per square inch, and an average stretch of will make good iron; hence the necessity
the product
i^ inches in twelve lineal^ 10.5 per cent. for tests as to toughnessand stretching.
" For rivet iron, an average breaking strength of 18 The ordinary iron of commerce is made, as a rule,
tons per circular inch." from an inferior quality of pig, is frequently worked in
Common American bar iron will not ordinarily bear its conversion from carbonate to metallic iron by the

over 50,000 pounds ultimate strength, will not elongate process practically known as puddling, instead of boil-

over 8^ percent., and will show signs of fracture when ing, and is only once worked from the puddle or muck
bent cold over 45 degrees. bar, corresponding to No. 2 iron.

The undersigned have tested iron as brittle as this, It is also made sometimes from scrap iron and often
and quite unfit to go into a bridge, the breaking from old rails. Neither of these modes gives reliable
strength of which was over 60,000 pounds per square iron, as there isno certainty of the quality of the scrap
inch. used, though bar iron made from scrap is ordinarily
Engineers should provide such tests in their specifi- reckoned as good quality. Iron from old rails is
cations as will distmguish the two sorts apart, and if always inferior, and not to be trusted for the uses of a
they admit the use of the lower grade iron, should dis- high-grade iron, as rails are generally made in the first

cri:ninate by fixing a larger margin of safety than for place of inferior iron.
the tougher and better iron. If they do not, they will Hence it follows that a reliable iron for bridge pur-
be pretty sure to get the poorer quality, as it costs less poses should be made of a known quality of pig, worked
money, and the reason wiiy will be sliown. in the best way in the boiling furnace, tested in the
Tlie mode of making refined iron at Piicenixville is muck bar, and cut, piled, heated, and rolled once or
to take a high quality of gray forge pig iron, and work twice thereafter, according as single- or doubie-refined
it in a furnace by the process technically known as iron is needed.
"boiling," the boiling furnace being " fettled" with It is not to be expected, nor is it desirable, that the

ore. This pig iron when " brought to nature" is engineer should dictate the process of manufacture, but
balled up in the furnace in the usual way, squeezed in lie should establish such tests in his specification as
a Burden squeezer, and then rolled into a flat bar, will distinguish an inferior from a high quality of iron,
technically known as a "muck bar," or No. i bar. and what these tests should be has been previously
From each heat so made one bar is taken and btnt stated.
 22 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE WORKS.

Table No. i.

ACTUAL WEIGHTS OF ENGINES, TENDERS, CARS, ETC.

Total weight
Concentrated
of engine and
weight on Result- Result-
No. of No. of loaded lender
No. DESCRIPTION. Driving ,
Truck
Drivers divided
hy length of
ing
weight
<livided by dis- M^
Wheels. Wheels. lance covered on P .
I

driving-wheel iperfut)t. P"-' '""'

track, includ-
base.
ing pilot.
I

CLASS No. 1. "PUSHERS."

Reading Railway Tank, all \2

Reading Railway Tank, with tender

Pennsylvania Railway, with tender

Hallimorc & Ohio Railw.-\y, with tender..

Fairlie double-endcr

elf
 PHCENIXVILLE BRIDGE-WORKS. 23

Table No. 2.
WEIGHT IN POUNDS PER FOOT RUN OF TRACK, FOR DIFFERENT SPANS AND KINDS OF
TRAINS.

4. a.
COAL COAL FREIGHT FREIGHT PASSENGER
All TRAIN. TRAIN. TRAIN. TRAIN. TRAIN.
Length of Spans in Feet.
I

Lncomotivi Cars (No. ao) Cr (No. 20)

i Cars (No. 19) Cars (No. \q\ Cars (No. 22)
Engines, drawn by E drawn by 2 En- drawn by I En- drawn by i En-
2 En- dra. n by I En-
gines (No. 7). gine (No, 7), gines (No. 8), gine (No, 8), gine (No, 16).

UiuIlt 13.. 5cx

12 to 17.. 4000
17 to 25.. 350"
25 to 8^.. 3000
8j In iKi.. 2500
tlo.. 2430 2094 2405 1870 1481
125.. 2363 2,.67 2262 1809 1418
150.. 2275 2026 2111 1740 13.1
175.. 2200 JOOO 2^,65 1710 285
2(X).. 2130 >974 .Q22 1665 1344
225.. 2100 1950 1S64 1631 I31I
250.. 2ij68 943 i8u9 1603 1186
3<x).. 2026 1
92 'J >733 1363 II47
35"" 20U0 1907 1679 1533 iiao
4rju.. 2000 1638 1510 I too

Table No. 3.
RATES OF DEAD TO LIVE LOAD, FOR DIFFERENT SPANS.

DEAD LOAD
LENr.Tii OP Spans in Fukt.

Under 12
12 to 17.
17 to 25,
25 to 50.
50 to 83.
100.
llu.
125.
150,
75.
2on.
225,
250,
300,
350
400.


APPENDIX No. 3.

FROM THE "CHICAGO RAILROAD GAZETTE," JULY, 1870.

ENGLISH AND AMERICAN IRON BRIDGES.

Some two months ago tenders were solicited for the Some persons erroneously suppose that the more iron

construction of iron railway bridges of spans of 100 and there is in a bridge the stronger it will be. But a little

200 by the Intercolonial Railway of Canada, con-

feet, reflection will show that it is only the iron that is

necting Quebec and Halifax. This call was very gener- working, or, in other words, that is actually strained by
ally responded to, there being tenders put in by nineteen the load, that contributes to the strength of the struc-
English, one Belgian, and sixteen American bridge- ture. All the rest is dead weight, and merely weighs
builders. down the bridge. In very short spans this is not dis-
The specification, which was a rigid one, called for advantageous, as it tends to diminish vibration, but in
uniformity of strength, but left the design open to each long spans where the weight of the bridge much ex-
person. The bridges were all to be of wrought iron, ceeds that of the load passing over it, every pound of
capable of bearing ly^ gross tons per lineal foot, in iron that does not contribute to the strength of the
addition to their own weight, without straining the iron bridge is a positive injury. To illustrate this more
in tension to over 10,000 pounds per square inch. The clearly: one bridge weighs 125 tons and another
if

iron of the 200 feet spans was to be capable of bearing 250, and both are strained by the rolling load 10,000
60,000 pounds per square inch before breaking, and pounds per square inch, the lighter is the stronger of the
that of the 100 feet spans 50,000 pounds per square inch. two. But if the 125 ton bridge be strained 10,000 pounds
Muchinterest was felt as to the result of this compe- per square inch, while the 250 ton bridge is strained
tition, which was virtually one between English and only 5000 pounds per square inch, then the latter has
American systems of bridge building. The decision was really double the strength and double the life of the
that the long spans were awarded to an American firm, former; for half the iron may corrode away, and then
Messrs. CLARKE, REEVES & CO., of Phoenix- the working area of the bar will be equal. It is not
ville. Pa., and the short ^pans to English bridge- clearly perceiving this fact that the strength of the
builders, the Fairbairn Manufacturing Company, of bridge depends upon the working area of its part
Manchester. Of the thirty-six plans submitted, only that has led our English friends to make such heavy
three or four were rejected on account of not coming bridges.
up to special strength. Ill several plans, if the strain per square inch are
The bridges of Clarke, Reeves & Co. were selected alike for similar loads they must all be of the same
for the long spans, not only as being undoubtedly first- strength, providing the connections are equally perfect.
class, botli in material and workmanship, but also as Some lake more iron than others to efl'ect the result,
being the lowest responsible tender. Some curiosity but the result is the same.
has been expressed to know how .\merican bridge- The lightness of American bridges is due ist, to the
builders, using high-priced iron, and paying higlier concentration of material along the lines of strain,
wages for labor tlian their English competitors, could which enabled a lighter web system to be used, and
yet build a less costly bridge. hence a higher truss 2d, to this greater height of
;

While itsome extent true that the specifications

is to truss, which throws less leverage on the upper and lower

allowed of a lower (juality and less expensive iron for chord system, and hence recjuires less iron in their
the 100 than for the 200 feet span, yet one of the prin- members; 3d, to the use of eye and pin connections
cipal reasons why an American firm was lowest on the instead of rivets, by which there is no waste of metal

long and an English firm on the short spans is owing to to compensate for the deduction of rivet-holes.
the less weight of iron required by the American system American bridges are stiffer vertically and better
of bridge, and this is more apparent the longer the span. braced laterally than English bridges, their greater
(24)

n

PHUiNIXVJLLE BRIDGE- WORKS.

height giving less deflecticn under a load, and allowing Bridge over White River, near Mtvlora, Indiana, foi
of overhead bracing as well as that below the track. the Ohio and Mississippi Railway Company. Length,
But the less quantity of iron required to do the work centre to centra of end pins, 147 feet 6 inches. Height
is not the whole explanation of the less cost of American of truss, 28 feet.

as compared with English bridges. A second and The force consisted of

equally important reason is the less amount of manual Howard and ten men, one truss.

labor required to construct and erect them owing to Buzby and ten men, one truss.
the general use of machinery in forming all the parts. Kelly and ten men, running in iron.
English bridges are made of low-price iron and re- Bussing and seven men, connecting top end of tie
quire a great deal of it, and a great deal of h nd-labor bars, afternoon only. Employed on oth-r work not
in constructing and erecting. connected with raising in the forenoon.

American bridges have all their principal parts formed Monday, February 5, 1872, coivmienced running in
by machinery. They are of exact uniform dimensions, iron at 8 a.m., at 5.30 p.m., same day, span swinging
in similar spans, and hence perfectly interchangeable, clear and top laterals on. moved on an average
Iron
like the parts of the locks of the American rifles, or of one hundred and fifty feet. The men all went to
sewing-machines. Hence machine-labor can be ap- Medora for dinner, one and a half miles distant, which
plied to their manufacture, and the cost at the works consumed one hour strong, making the actual working
reduced to a minimum. time eight hours and thirty minutes. Total force, three
But American bridges have still another advantage. foremen and thirty men full time, one foreman and
They are so made that nearly all the work is done at seven men four and a half hours, equivalent to three
the shops, and they can be erected with the least possible hundred and sixteen and a half hours for one man.
amount of labor, and that imskilled. In fact, the cost Style of truss, " Pratt or Whipple." Details of con-
of erecting the staging is the principal expense ; after struction by Clarke, Reeves & Co., by whom the
that a 200 feet span can be erected and made self-sus- bridge was constructed at their works in Phcenixville,
taininp in the space of two days, if necessary. (See Pennsylvania. t
letter of T. D. Lovett, Ex-Chief Engineer Ohio and E. S. Duval, Superintendent of Bridges, Ohio and
Mississippi Railway Company.) Mississippi Railway, says:
But the English bridge is only about half done when "I am satisfied that the same length with the same
the scaffolding and the iron placed upon it. It
is built crew of men can be raised in less time than last span
has then to be riveted together, which is expensive, as at Medora. We had no idea of swinging the span that
the conveniences for such work at the site of a bridge day. We commenced in the morning; after dinner,

are not often great. It is slow and tedious, requiring however, seeing how rapidly we had advanced in the

from two to three weeks to put together a 200 feet span. fore part of the day, we then determined to swing the
Taking all these things into account, it will be seen span before leaving it."

how American bridge-builders have been able to com- Many men had been in the employ of the
of the
pete with English firms on the large bridge at Buffalo, Ohio and Mississippi Company under my directions
and in the recent case of the long span bridges of the for a number of years.

Intercolonial Railroad of Canada. You are at liberty to use the above in any manner
you see proi)er.
Cincinnati, Nov. ii, 1S72.
Very truly yours,
Gentlemen :

Below please find a statemert of the force employed Thos. D. Lovett,

and time consumed in raising the last span of Medora Ex- Chief Eng;incer Ohio and Mississippi Railway Co.
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