In 1890, the year after Pittsburgh received the land for Schenley Park, a temporary trestle was constructed across the ravine known as
Junction Hollow to provide access from
Oakland. This bridge was widely perceived to be unsafe and was the cause of multiple panics when large crowds of people attending the park's annual
Fourth of July celebration became convinced the bridge was collapsing. The bridge was also damaged in the fire that destroyed the nearby
Schenley Park Casino in 1896. In 1896, the city's Director of Public Works,
Edward Manning Bigelow, announced plans for a new, permanent park entrance featuring two new bridges, the present Schenley Bridge over Junction Hollow and a smaller stone bridge over St. Pierre Hollow. The stone bridge was later buried when the hollow was filled in to build
Schenley Plaza. Construction of the Schenley Bridge began in July 1896 and it was completed in November 1897, though the approaches were not finished. The bridge was first opened to the public for the Fourth of July celebration in 1898. Contrasting the new bridge with the old, the
Pittsburgh Post wrote, "That huge iron arch, curving above the railroad and those heavy stone supports will never tremble beneath the weight of all the people who can pack themselves upon it, even should they be piled layer upon layer." Bigelow originally planned to have the old Schenley Bridge moved to the end of Wilmot Street (now
Boulevard of the Allies) to provide an entrance to the park from
South Oakland; however, the structure was ultimately sold for scrap instead. The proposed location is now the site of the
Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge. ==In popular culture==