The present bridge is the third bridge at the site. It remains the second oldest steel bridge in the United States. In 1818, a wooden bridge was built across the Monongahela by Louis Wernwag at the cost of $102,000. This bridge was destroyed in Pittsburgh's
Great Fire of 1845. The second bridge on the site was a wire rope
suspension bridge built by
John A. Roebling. Increases in bridge traffic and river traffic eventually made the lightly built bridge with eight short spans inadequate. The Lindenthal bridge was built in its place, using the Roebling bridge's stone masonry piers. The Smithfield Street Bridge is the penultimate of the many bridges that span the
Monongahela before the river joins with the
Allegheny River to form the
Ohio River at
Downtown Pittsburgh. Only the
Fort Pitt Bridge is farther downstream. The bridge also served the
Pittsburgh Railways streetcar system with lines coming from the
Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel and from Carson Street, crossing the bridge and continuing into downtown along Grant Street and Smithfield Street, returning to the bridge via Wood Street or Grant Street. The tracks occupied the eastern half of the bridge. The streetcar line was abandoned in July 1985, when the streetcars were diverted to the
Panhandle Bridge and the new
light rail subway, on July 7. The last day of streetcar service on downtown Pittsburgh streets and over the Smithfield Street Bridge was July 6, 1985, although the final crossing of the bridge by a streetcar did not take place until 1:40 a.m. on July 7. The former streetcar right-of-way was converted into a paved roadway for northbound traffic. The bridge was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places on March 21, 1974. Two years later, on May 11, 1976, it was designated a
National Historic Landmark. The bridge's short clearance from the river and its deteriorated condition convinced
PennDOT officials to demolish and replace it with a modern bridge. Officials considered lobbying by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation on preserving the bridge. In 1994–1995 the bridge was rehabilitated with a new deck, a colorful paint scheme, and architectural lighting. The abandoned rail lines became an extra traffic lane, and a light-controlled bus lane was added during peak traffic hours. The bridge also has the distinction of being the bridge most heavily walked by pedestrians, mostly commuters who park at
Station Square. The bridge connects Smithfield Street in Downtown Pittsburgh with Station Square. ==Gallery==