Taft Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Taft Bridge, also known as the Connecticut Avenue Bridge or William Howard Taft Bridge, is a historic bridge
located in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C.
It carries Connecticut Avenue
over the Rock Creek gorge, including Rock Creek
and the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway
, connecting the neighborhoods of Woodley Park and Kalorama
. It is situated to the southwest of the Duke Ellington Bridge
.
On July 3, 2003, the Taft Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places
.
with unreinforced concrete
arches and a reinforced concrete
deck. The total length of the bridge is 274.5 metres (900.6 ft). It has been called an "engineering tour de force" and the largest unreinforced concrete structure in the world. In 1931, the bridge was renamed in honor of U.S. President
William Howard Taft
.
, two on each end of the bridge (each approx. 7 ft. x 6 ft. 6 in. x 13 ft.). Two of the lions rest on all fours with their heads tilted upwards and mouths slightly open while the other pair lie with their eyes closed, apparently sleeping. They were originally designed and sculpted by Roland Hinton Perry
in 1906 out of cast concrete
(the bridge as a whole is one of the first cast concrete bridges in the country) and were installed in 1907.
In 1964 the lions were restored and weatherproofed by Washington based sculptor Renato Luccetti, although this restoration proved to be less than entirely successful. When a major rehabilitation of the bridge began in 1993, the lions, which were in very bad condition, were removed for further restoration. They may have been stored in the Air Rights Tunnel on southbound I-395, although this is unclear. The sculptures were finally found to be beyond restoring.
The sculptor Reinaldo Lopez-Carrizo of Professional Restoration eventually produced molds based on the existing sculptures and photographs, and used them to cast new concrete lion sculptures that were installed on the bridge in July and August 2000. The same molds were used to cast bronze lions installed at the main pedestrian entrance to the National Zoo farther north on Connecticut Avenue in 2002.
with its wings spread.
A replica of the Bairstow eagles is seen in a World War I monument in Middletown, Delaware
.
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
located in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
It carries Connecticut Avenue
Connecticut Avenue (Washington, D.C.)
Connecticut Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., and suburban Montgomery County, Maryland. It is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House, and the segment south of Florida Avenue was one of the original streets in Pierre Charles...
over the Rock Creek gorge, including Rock Creek
Rock Creek (Potomac River)
Rock Creek is a free-flowing tributary of the Potomac River, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean via the Chesapeake Bay. The creek is long, with a drainage area of about...
and the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway
Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway
The Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway, often known simply as the Rock Creek Parkway, is a parkway maintained by the National Park Service as part of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C...
, connecting the neighborhoods of Woodley Park and Kalorama
Kalorama, Washington, D.C.
The Kalorama area within the Northwest Quadrangle of Washington, D.C., includes two adjacent, quite affluent historical residential neighborhoods, Kalorama Triangle and Sheridan-Kalorama. The area is accessible from the Dupont Circle and Woodley Park Metro stations, as well as various bus lines...
. It is situated to the southwest of the Duke Ellington Bridge
Duke Ellington Bridge
The Duke Ellington Bridge, named after Duke Ellington, carries Calvert Street NW over Rock Creek in Washington, D.C., United States. It connects 18th Street NW in Adams Morgan with Connecticut Avenue NW in Woodley Park, just north of the Taft Bridge....
.
On July 3, 2003, the Taft Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
History
The Classical Revival bridge was built between 1897–1907. It was designed by engineer George S. Morison and architect Edward Pearce Casey. It is an arch bridgeArch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
with unreinforced concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
arches and a reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
deck. The total length of the bridge is 274.5 metres (900.6 ft). It has been called an "engineering tour de force" and the largest unreinforced concrete structure in the world. In 1931, the bridge was renamed in honor of U.S. President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
.
Perry Lions
The bridge is "guarded" by four large male lionsLion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
, two on each end of the bridge (each approx. 7 ft. x 6 ft. 6 in. x 13 ft.). Two of the lions rest on all fours with their heads tilted upwards and mouths slightly open while the other pair lie with their eyes closed, apparently sleeping. They were originally designed and sculpted by Roland Hinton Perry
Roland Hinton Perry
Roland Hinton Perry was an American sculptor and painter.-Background:Perry was born in New York City to George and Ione Hinton Perry, and entered the École des Beaux Arts in 1890 at the age of 19...
in 1906 out of cast concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
(the bridge as a whole is one of the first cast concrete bridges in the country) and were installed in 1907.
In 1964 the lions were restored and weatherproofed by Washington based sculptor Renato Luccetti, although this restoration proved to be less than entirely successful. When a major rehabilitation of the bridge began in 1993, the lions, which were in very bad condition, were removed for further restoration. They may have been stored in the Air Rights Tunnel on southbound I-395, although this is unclear. The sculptures were finally found to be beyond restoring.
The sculptor Reinaldo Lopez-Carrizo of Professional Restoration eventually produced molds based on the existing sculptures and photographs, and used them to cast new concrete lion sculptures that were installed on the bridge in July and August 2000. The same molds were used to cast bronze lions installed at the main pedestrian entrance to the National Zoo farther north on Connecticut Avenue in 2002.
Bairstow Eagle Lampposts
Twenty-four lampposts are equally spaced along both sides of the Taft Bridge. Created by sculptor Ernest Bairstow in 1906 the lampposts are composed of concrete bases (approx. H. 5 ft. 8 in. W. 4 ft.) with painted iron lampposts (approx. H. 17 ft. W. 4 ft.) set in them. The pedestals are decorated with garland and a fluted column featuring acanthus leaves at the top and bottom. Above the leaves is a horizontal bracket with two globes hanging from each side of the column. Each lamppost is topped with a painted iron eagleEagle
Eagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...
with its wings spread.
A replica of the Bairstow eagles is seen in a World War I monument in Middletown, Delaware
Middletown, Delaware
Middletown is a town in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 18,871.-Geography:Middletown is located at with an elevation of ....
.
See also
- List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
- National Register of Historic Places listings in the District of Columbia
Further reading
- J. Goode, Washington Sculpture, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008. , A cultural history of outdoor sculpture in the Nation's capital.
- Williams, Paul K., Gregory J. Alexander, & Gregory V. Alexander. Woodley Park Arcadia Publishing, 2003.
External links
- Taft Bridge, from the Historic American Buildings SurveyHistoric American Buildings SurveyThe Historic American Buildings Survey , Historic American Engineering Record , and Historic American Landscapes Survey are programs of the National Park Service established for the purpose of documenting historic places. Records consists of measured drawings, archival photographs, and written...