1869 Lord Suspension Bridge
In 1850, George Lord was granted a license by New York State to operate a ferry across the Delaware at Equinunk. Due to the large number of ferry users, there was speculation for many years that a bridge should be constructed. The first suspension bridge between Lordvile and Equinunk was constructed in 1869 and opened on January 1st, 1870, with Alvah I. Lord as the proprietor. This bridge featured two wooden towers, first painted white and then later painted red, as shown in the accompanying photo. On the New York side, a toll house stood, which Alvah Lord would spend day and night ready to take tolls from bridge-takers at any time of day. There was a $10 fine for traveling faster than a walk on this bridge. The bridge stood for nearly 35 years until being destroyed in the Great Pumpkin Flood on October 8th, 1903.
Restoration + colorization of original 1869 Lord Bridge (circa 1900) by Keo Kirschner
1904 Lord Suspension Bridge
3/4 view of the 1904 Lordville Suspension Bridge - notice the thin, steel I-beam design, with the deck taller than that of the 1869 bridge.
The second suspension bridge was quickly built within a few months and opened to the public on June 4th, 1904 with Mrs. Ida Lord Lambert and Mr. Walter S. Lambert as the proprietor. This bridge was built higher above the river than the previous, and featured an entirely steel design. There was a $25 fine for traveling faster than a walk on this bridge and $0.20 extra fine per ton past four tons load. This bridge stood for nearly 85 years before being being closed in Febraury of 1984, and later demolished on November 24th, 1986, due to deteriorating condition of the bridge and surrounding soil conditions. Lordville remained without a bridge for nearly five years before plans to build a new one began in 1991.
1992 Lordville-Equinunk Bridge
The new bridge, named Interstate #9, began construction in May of 1991, and opened to the public in the spring of 1992 and was completed by the New York-Pennsylvania Joint Bridge Commission. While the bridge was originally planned to be built in a slightly different location for cost-effective reasons, locals petitioned for the new bridge to be built in the exact location as the previous two bridges for historical purposes. As a result, today's bridge lies in the exact thoroughfare as the 1869 and 1903 Lord bridges.
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Lordville Bridge Photo Archive
Engineering Documents
The 1869 Lord Bridge in its original presentation, painted white with black trim- Notice the Toll House on the right side
The 1904 Lord Bridge during the Annual Fourth of July Parade in Lordville-- image taken circa 1980
The Fourth of July Parade is an annual Lordville tradition, which is still celebrated to this day
1904 Lord Bridge in its final days-- closed to traffic (Fall of 1986)
Demolition of the 1904 Lord Bridge on November 24th, 1986
View of Lordville from the 1904 Lord Suspension Bridge- Notice the many now-demolished structures including the original Lordville Train Station and Water Tower, as well as the Timpson Barn on the farthest left
View of Lordville from the 1992 Lordville-Equinunk Bridge (Interstate Bridge #9) Notice the higher elevation on the Pennsylvania side before descending into New York for flood mitigation purposes