Нью-Джерси штатындағы Делавэр өзенінің бұрынғы көпірі

Bridge in New Jersey, US

The Darlington's Bridge at Delaware Station was a highway bridge that spanned the Delaware River in the community of Delaware, New Jersey (known locally as Delaware Station). A railroad bridge built by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad in 1871 to replace an earlier 1855 timber span, this bridge was sold off when a new bridge was erected upstream. Henry V. Darlington, an Episcopal minister in Delaware and nearby Belvidere offered to buy the second hand bridge for $5,000 (1914 USD, equal to $ today). Darlington converted it into a highway bridge, using two fired members of the nearby Meyer's Ferry to be toll collectors. The use of this bridge subsequently increased; as a result, it became part of State Highway Route 6 in 1927 and U. S. Route 46 in 1936. In 1932, during the massive state takeover of bridges by the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, Darlington refused buyout offers, bargaining his way up to $275,000 (1932 USD, equal to $ today) before accepting the sale. This amount was far less than the sale prices of the nearby Belvidere Riverton and Portland Columbia Covered Bridge, which were accepted for $60,000 (equal to $ today) and $50,000 (equal to $ today) respectively. Around that same time, tolls on this bridge and Route 6 were eliminated, and the bridge continued to operate toll free for twenty one years, until the Portland Columbia Toll Bridge was erected upstream at Columbia. The Commission finally ceased operations on the Darlington Bridge on April 3, 1954, and the bridge was immediately demolished.

As expansion of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W) continued westward from Hoboken, the railroad company saw the need to build a new bridge over the Delaware River. Reaching the community of Delaware (named after the river nearby), DL&W built a train station previously in the community, denoted as Delaware Station. The new wood bridge was constructed on the railroad mainline during 1855. The structure lasted a short time, until DL&W replaced the wooden crossing for a new 740 feet (226 m) long iron bridge. The new bridge had two tracks to cross the river, serving the local area with coal cars and boxcars crossing. The new bridge survived the floods in 1903 that destroyed many bridges (including the nearby Riverton Belvidere Bridge) along the Delaware and continued to prosper. However, as trains, cars and locomotives began to get heavier and larger, the DL&W needed to build a new bridge across the river to support the heavier weights. In 1902, they built the new bridge just upstream for the reason that it would not have to move much track for better service. As soon as the new bridge was finished, DL&W put the former one up for sale. Demand for second hand bridges were not high at the time, and when Henry V. B. Darlington, a local Episcopal minister, put up an offer of $5,000 (1902 USD) for the bridge, DL&W immediately took the money. The railroad did not check on the background of Reverend Darlington or asked what he wanted to do with the iron structure. His money was "as good as anybody's", according to DL&W. ), often came to Darlington's Bridge first. The McCrackens collected tolls in large bushel baskets, which were often filled to the brim of quarters and half dollars. Locals said that the McCrackens were sometimes spotted dropping these coins off the bridge and into the river below, although swimmers were never able to find anything of value to support the myth. Even though the bridge made a large sum of a money and the tollhouse was often filled with money, the place was never robbed. Two Airedales the McCrackens kept in the tollhouse, named Duke and Totsey, helped keep the place clear from thieves. Two years later, the Darlingtons made the news again, this time with the birth of their first child (a son) in Orange, New Jersey at Orange Memorial Hospital.

The bridge continued to prosper through the 1920s and 1930s with a toll of one quarter to cross the bridge, with drivers of State Highway Route 6 coming along the bridge from the junction with State Highway Route 8 coming across the bridge since 1927. During the 1920s and 1930s, the states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania began to buy out bridges along the Delaware River under the Joint Commission for the Elimination of Toll Bridges. The reconstructed bridge at Belvidere was bought by the commission for $60,000 (1920s USD) and the covered bridge at Columbia for only $50,000. Although the commission tried to buy the second hand railroad bridge for a lower, unspecified amount, Darlington refused, raising the amount to $275,000. Once the bridge was brought, tolls were eliminated. was alive and was in disbelief. The next April, the Toll Bridge Commission went ahead and dismantled the Darlington's bridge, which was fought by several legal actions. The bridge ceased operations on April 3, 1954, being demolished soon after. The covered bridge at Columbia was destroyed during Hurricane Diane the next August. which remains in condition from when the bridge was in use.