{
  "slug": "east-haddam-swing-bridge",
  "title": "East Haddam’s swing bridge",
  "towns": [
    "East Haddam",
    "Haddam"
  ],
  "counties": [
    "Middlesex"
  ],
  "dateRange": "1894–1999",
  "topic": "Bridges & transportation",
  "summary": "A movable river crossing that changed journeys between Haddam and East Haddam.",
  "history": [
    {
      "heading": "Before the bridge",
      "text": "Ferries long connected the two sides of the Connecticut River. East Haddam’s municipal history dates the service to 1695, and the town’s account describes a steam ferry introduced in 1894. The approach to the twentieth century brought a more permanent solution, while the river still needed to remain open to navigation.",
      "source_ids": [
        "town",
        "history"
      ]
    },
    {
      "heading": "The crossing of 1913",
      "text": "The bridge opened in 1913 and brought the old ferry service to an end. Its movable section swings aside for vessels instead of permanently blocking the channel. Road traffic and river traffic therefore use the same crossing in alternating movements, an operating requirement reflected in the structure’s engineering.",
      "source_ids": [
        "history",
        "engineer"
      ]
    },
    {
      "heading": "Reading a working structure",
      "text": "The engineering firm’s description distinguishes fixed truss spans from the through-truss swing section. The later photographs gathered here show the historic crossing’s steelwork and river setting. Their 2011 dates are clearly identified: they document the survival of the 1913 bridge rather than claiming to show its opening.",
      "source_ids": [
        "engineer"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "timeline": [
    {
      "date": "1894",
      "event": "A steam ferry operates at the crossing.",
      "source_ids": [
        "town"
      ]
    },
    {
      "date": "1913",
      "event": "The swing bridge opens and replaces the ferry service.",
      "source_ids": [
        "history"
      ]
    },
    {
      "date": "1913 onward",
      "event": "A movable span accommodates navigation on the river.",
      "source_ids": [
        "engineer"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "town",
      "title": "Town of East Haddam — Attractions",
      "url": "https://www.easthaddam.org/attractions"
    },
    {
      "id": "history",
      "title": "Town of East Haddam — Town History",
      "url": "https://www.easthaddam.org/town-history"
    },
    {
      "id": "engineer",
      "title": "H&H — East Haddam Bridge",
      "url": "https://www.hardestyhanover.com/projects/east-haddam-bridge/"
    }
  ],
  "images": [
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      "image": "/county-images/831df58d658f9efd537deb46a2c0934941f3cc80b168041f3fc24413d0d6fae9.jpg",
      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
      "creator": "Carol M. Highsmith",
      "source": "https://www.loc.gov/item/2012630763/",
      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
      "licenseUrl": "https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/482_high.html",
      "kind": "photograph",
      "later": true,
      "originalCaption": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut LCCN2012630763",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
      "creator": "Carol M. Highsmith",
      "source": "https://www.loc.gov/item/2012631086/",
      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "source": "https://www.loc.gov/item/2012631089/",
      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "alt": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
      "date": "5 October 2011",
      "credit": "Carol M. Highsmith / The George F. Landegger Collection of Connecticut Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
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      "title": "East Haddam Bridge over the Connecticut River, East Haddam, Connecticut — later documentary photograph",
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      "date": "9 October 2011",
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      "rights": "No known restrictions on publication. Carol M. Highsmith photographs at the Library of Congress.",
      "license": "Public domain",
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}