On display at the Jamestown Historical Society from June 30 – September 2, 2007, the exhibit is free and open to the public.  Arrangements are currently being made to accommodate a traveling exhibit of the panels throughout the State this Fall.
 

TRAVELING EXHIBIT SCHEDULE

JUNE 30 - SEPTEMBER 2, 2007
WEDNESDAYS - SUNDAYS 1-4 PM

JAMESTOWN HISTORICAL SOCIETY
92 NARRAGANSETT AVENUE
JAMESTOWN, RHODE ISLAND

For 66 years the Jamestown Bridge stretched across the Narragansett Bay West Passage between Conanicut Island and Saunderstown in North Kingstown.  Built in 1940 to replace the traditional ferry connection between Jamestown and the mainland, the narrow, concrete pier and steel cantilever truss structure shaped the growth of the town of Jamestown and defined residents’ and visitors’ experience of the local landscape and communities.  After 1969, when the Newport Bridge opened and toll collection on the Jamestown Bridge terminated, automobile traffic and growth in Jamestown increased dramatically.  In 1992 the obsolete Jamestown Bridge gave way to the new Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge, leaving the closed Jamestown Bridge to stand quiet and unused for 14 years until the first controlled detonation of the demolition program on April 18, 2006.

This exhibit chronicles the demise and removal of this Narragansett Bay icon through exploring four themes:

·         Studies and documentation completed prior to demolition

·         Demolition technology

·         Recycling and reuse of bridge debris

·         Changes in the Narragansett Bay landscape

The exhibit is sponsored by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration to provide viewers with an opportunity to learn more about the history, removal, and disposal of the Jamestown Bridge.

Sponsors

Federal Highway Administration
Rhode Island Department of Transportation

Hosts

Jamestown Historical Society

Exhibit

PAL
LLAMAproduct
Iolabs
 

Bridge Demolition and Removal

Gordon R. Archibald Engineers, Inc.
Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc.
Cashman Equipment Corporation
Joseph B. Fay Company
Demtech, Inc.

*All dates are approximate. Please check with host institutions for exact exhibit dates.