Walnut Lane Bridge: 1908 - 2008

Behind-the-Scences Walking Tour Tickets Now Available!

Join local community members at the Walnut Lane Bridge for a behind-the-scenes tour of the historic landmark on November 15, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Hike underneath the bridge and explore the trails of the Wissahickon Valley while experiencing the bridge as you have never seen it before. Tour will be led by Cliveden Executive Director David Young, who has spearheaded the 100th anniversary celebration of the Walnut Lane Bridge.

The walking tour is run in conjunction with Mt. Airy Learning Tree. To register for the event, visit www.mtairylearningtree.org. Admission is $15 and free to Walnut Lane Bridge Club members. 

Walnut Lane Bridge Dedicated as Historic Landmark!

     

The Walnut Lane Bridge was dedicated as a historic landmark by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission this past Saturday.  Nearly 200 people showed up to help Cliveden recreate this historic occassion.  Speakers included David Young (Executive Director of Cliveden), Jonathan Farnham (Executive Director of the Philadelphia Historical and Museum Commission), Janet Klein (Commissioner of the PA Historical and Museum Commission), Bill Greenlee (City Council) and Ryan Egan (Representative for Frank Rizzo).

The presentations were followed by the unveiling of historic markers by descendants of Raymond Pierce, an original construction worker on the bridge. Immediately afterwards, residents of Roxborough and residents of Germantown marched toward the center in an act of unity not seen since residents marched over the bridge in 1908 singing "Hail Philadelphia."  The bridge was shut down to traffic for 2 hours and the Wissahickon never sounded more serene.  Attendees quenched their appetites for the Wissahickon tradition of catfish and waffles, held at the Ugly Moose after the ceremony.

Special thanks to event sponsors Stephanie G. Wolf, Institute for Museum and Library Services and the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.  Thanks for the continued support of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Historic Germantown: Freedom's Backyard.

For event photos, see the "Dedication Ceremony" folder to the left.

Warm up Your Vocal Cords for Wissahickon Sing Night

Tomorrow night is Wissahickon Sing Night at Cliveden! Come out to 6401 Germantown Avenue at 7:30pm and sing along as we recreate local music and poetry of the Wissahickon Valley. Featuring local music from the 17th and 18th century and tavern songs from the 19th century. A live band will be on hand to provide background music as we recreate the famous “Sing Nights” that were a part of the planning of public works which eventually resulted in the construction of the Walnut Lane Bridge.

Admission to the sing night is $5, free for Bridge Club Members. Reservations requested but not necessary.

Visit www.cliveden.org for further details, write to info@cliveden.org or call 215-848-1777.

Details for Walnut Lane Bridge Dedication Ceremony and Wissahickon Sing Night

“When built it was not just a way across the Wissahickon, but a way forward into the new century,” wrote one historian of the Walnut Lane Bridge. On October 18, 2008 Cliveden of the National Trust presents a State Marker Dedication and Unveiling ceremony at the Walnut Lane Bridge to usher in the bridge’s new century. The bridge is located at the intersection of West Walnut Lane and Park Line Drive in Germantown. Traffic will be closed on the bridge from 12:00pm to 2:00pm as Cliveden presents its final event in an ongoing celebration of the Walnut Lane Bridge’s 100th anniversary. The afternoon presents an excellent opportunity for the community to learn the history behind one of its most captivating landmarks.

The ceremony will take place at 1:00pm and include speakers such as David Young, executive director of Cliveden and resident of Germantown. A Philadelphia Historical Commission designation will be read by historian Jon Farnham and there will also be state and local officials commending the work of the City on the project. Finalizing the dedication, descendants of the Walnut Lane Bridge builders will unveil state historical markers at each end of the bridge.

The ceremony will also include music by a local string band and drum corps, providing entertainment for the whole family. Songs like Hail Philadelphia and others of the time period aim to align with those performed at the bridge’s opening in 1908. Booths of local organizations will line the bridge, including sites from Historic Germantown and Friends of the Wissahickon.

A Catfish and Waffles Luncheon, a Wissahickon tradition that accompanied the bridge’s opening 100 years ago, will follow the event. It will be held at the Ugly Moose, 443 Shurs Lane, between 2:30 and 4:00. Advanced reservation is necessary. Those interested should contact Rick Fink, Education Director, at (215) 848 – 1777 or rfink@cliveden.org.

The Walnut Lane Bridge was completed in 1908 and represents more than a connection between Germantown and Roxborough. It became a product for a bold new vision of Philadelphia. The bridge was infused with “beautility” – an idea that the combination of “beauty” and “utility” in architecture could “lift up the spirit of citizens in every day life.” Maurice Fitzmaurice, Chief engineer of London has insisted that the Walnut Lane Bridge was “worth the trip across the Atlantic.” The Walnut Lane Bridge has inspired bridge design both locally and nationally, including the Green Lane Bridge in Manayunk and the Rock Creek Bridge in Washington D.C.

Cliveden’s ongoing Walnut Lane Bridge Exhibit opened May 1st and runs through December 31, 2008. The exhibition is FREE to the public and open daily at Cliveden from 12:00pm – 4:00pm. More information on the Walnut Lane Bridge and dedication ceremony can be found at www.walnutlanebridge.org or www.cliveden.org.

Sponsoring partners of the Walnut Lane Bridge Exhibition at Cliveden include The Institute for Museum and Library Services, Museums for America, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Cliveden of the National Trust, Historic Germantown Preserved, Roxborough Historical Society, Ugly Moose Restaurant, Manayunk Brewery and Restaurant, and Albert E. and Stephanie G. Wolf.

 

100th Anniversary Dedication Ceremony

Have you seen the new paint on the Walnut Lane Bridge? It looks spectacular! If you have not had the chance, get out to the Walnut Lane Bridge to see preservation in action. Over the past few months Cliveden has been doing many service projects around the bridge. Today the bridge stands much cleaner than before, and with a fresh coat of paint, nobody can even tell the bridge is 100-years-old.

To help us celebrate, come out to the Walnut Lane Bridge on Saturday October 18th from 12:00pm to 2:00pm for a ceremony marking the centennial of the bridge opening in 1908.  The bridge will be closed to traffic as local officials will dedicate the bridge as a historic landmark during a marker dedication ceremony. Plenty of food, music and tables from community organizations will provide entertainment for the whole family. 

Located at the intersection of Walnut Lane and Park Line Drive in Germantown.

Visit www.walnutlanebridge.org for further details

Also, come out to Cliveden the night before (October 17th at 7:30pm) for Wissahickon Sing Night.  Join us and sign along as we recreate local music from the Wissahickon Valley. A live band will be on hand to provide background sounds as we sing along to historic music and poetry. 

Wanted: A Few Good Volunteers

Walnut Lane Bridge Dedication Ceremony Meeting
August 26, 4PM

Join Cliveden staff members, community officials and local volunteers as we plan for our big Walnut Lane Bridge Dedication Ceremony on October 18th. If you would like to get involved with the dedication ceremony, have a group of volunteers interested in contributing to the event, or would like to set up an information table at the ceremony, this meeting is for you! Meeting will discuss the agenda for the ceremony and ways you and your group can get involved in the preservation of this historic landmark. Meeting takes place in Cliveden's Carriage House, located at the corner of Morton and Cliveden Streets just off Germantown Avenue.

Visit www.cliveden.org for further details or call 215-848-1777 to find out more information!

Bridge Roundtable to Take Place at Cliveden

In celebration of the Walnut Lane Bridge's 100th anniversary, Cliveden will be hosting Is the Bridge Safe? A Community Roundtable.

Join local and state officials, as well as descendants of bridge construction workers in Cliveden’s Carriage House as they discuss bridge safety. Learn what the experts think about the 100-year-old Walnut Lane Bridge and how it has held up for the past century. Is the bridge still safe to cross? What else needs to be done to preserve this historic landmark?

$5 admission fee, free for Bridge Club members.

Visit http://www.cliveden.org for further details or call 215-848-1777.

New face to the bridge!

Have you crossed the Walnut Lane Bridge in the past few days? It just received a fresh coat of paint. In the photo to the right, you can see the contrast of the before and after effect.

Walnut Lane Bridge in Art for All To Experience

Have you seen the big painting of the Walnut Lane Bridge in our exhibition? It's by Troy Sayers, a local artist who works in different media. Sayers painted the Walnut Lane Bridge in a series including other bridges in the area, such as the Henry Avenue Bridge, and later transformed it into a non-visual piece designed to be experienced by people who are blind.

Sayers positioned gel ice packs and toe warmers (the same type that skiers use) underneath the surface to create warm and cool areas marking warm and cool colors. After this picture was taken, he also added intensified color to the piece to enhance the viewing experience for those who are visually impaired but can still see some color and light.

Sayers's interest in bridges as subjects for his artwork stems from the combination of their architectural aspects and natural surroundings, as well as their fuction as community landmarks.

This non-visual work was displayed at the NEBA (National Exhibits for Blind Artists) in Philadelphia where Sayers is a board member. He recently spent time in Paris and is working on a watercolor series of bridges along the Seine. More information on the artist can be found at www.troysayers.com.

Building Bridges Camp Recap

Paper made, trails trekked, water routes mapped, poison ivy avoided(!), food transformed into art, macroinvertebrates identified, sharks and sting rays petted, bridge studied, sketched, and explored...

It's safe to say that Building Bridges summer camp was a huge success! Sixteen kids, a majority of them from the Germantown/Mt. Airy community, enjoyed and action pack week filled with day trips and activities. Special thanks to Mr. Brown who lead the water mapping activity and John Reese who filled in last minute with his garde manger presentation.

Below are some photos from the week, and many more can be found in the album "Building Bridges Camp" (link on the menu to the left).