Quintessential Pennsylvania

  While the number of historic iron truss and metal truss bridges has been dwindling over the years due to several factors, occasionally a bridge will be preserved for its historical value. Such is the case of the Inwood Iron Bridge, which was built in 1899 and located near Lickdale, Pennsylvania. The Inwood Iron Bridge was fabricated by the Pittsburgh Bridge Company and erected by Nelson and Buchanan of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. It is historically significant as one of the oldest surviving Pennsylvania thru truss highway bridges in Pennsylvania. Early examples of Pennsylvania (Petit) thru-truss highway bridges from before the 20th Century were not common as the design was more often used for railroad bridges. Only a handful of such roadway bridges have been identified around Pennsylvania, making the Inwood Iron Bridge more historically significant. The 151-foot-long Inwood Iron Bridge crossed Swatara Creek and was located not far from Swatara State Park in Lebanon County, Pennsylvan