Nashville Railroad Bridge

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Work on the first iteration of a railroad bridge across the Cumberland River began by the Louisville & Nashville Railroad (L&N) in 1857. The new crossing was nearly completed in 1858 but work was halted for unspecified reasons. ³ Construction resumed in 1859 and the new bridge was completed at the cost of $200,000 and opened on October 27, 1859. ¹ The 700-foot McCallum through truss included the main swing span and three auxiliary spans were jointly utilized by the L&N and the Edgefield & Kentucky Railroad (E&K). The two center draw spans were the largest of their type in the world.

In 1862, Nashville was taken by Union troops during the American Civil War. ³ As the Confederate soldiers retreated from Nashville in February, they set fire to the railroad bridge. ^{1 3}

The crossing was hastily repaired and served the L&N and the E&K until 1867 at which point a new bridge was erected on the same piers as the old bridge. ³ The wood trusses were removed and replaced with Fink iron trusses at the cost of $33,000. ^{1 3} Albert Fink, the inventor of the truss design, was the General Superintendent of the L&N and oversaw the construction of the bridge. ³

Heavier train loads necessitated the construction of a new steel truss bridge that would include two fixed spans and one swing span with two overlapping tracks. ³ Although one train could be on the bridge at a time, traffic could move through more quickly. Work progressed in phases which included reinforcing the piers with granite and erecting a new superstructure by the Pennsylvania Steel Company. Overseen by J.L. Armstrong, the upgrade cost $70,000. ^{1 3}

Work on a new, more substantial bridge began on June 10, 1931, which included the erection of a Camelback through truss swing span and two Camelback through truss approach spans.