An Engineering Marvel

Arlington Memorial Bridge was regarded as Washington's most beautiful bridge and, when it opened, was also an engineering marvel. Originally designed by Joseph B. Strauss as a drawbridge, it had a large bascule span that could open and close to let tall boats pass to the port at Georgetown. To preserve the bridge's beauty and avoid detracting from the monumental vistas, the bascule operating mechanisms and counterweights were placed inside the bridge. At the time it opened, it was the largest drawbridge in the world without counterweight towers. As commercial shipping river traffic declined and the fixed-span Theodore Roosevelt Bridge was built in 1962, there was no longer any need to open it because tall boats could no longer reach Georgetown. Although the current rehabilitation will replace the drawbridge with a fixed span, the bridge remains a testament to the ingenuity of its designers in blending beauty and functionality.

Washington, District of Columbia · United States