It’s huge. That’s the feeling here, even among people who see it every day. It’s the Tunkhannock Creek Viaduct - known to folks around here as simply the Nicholson Bridge - and in keeping with the Poconos’ deep railroad heritage, it is the largest concrete railroad bridge in the world.
Built between 1912 and 1915 by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, the bridge is 2,375 feet long, 34 feet wide, and 240 feet high. Construction required twelve concrete spans, 163,000 cubic yards of concrete and more than two million pounds of steel. At its peak, construction involved the participation of about 500 workers.
Those are the numbers, but to understand the viaduct you have to see it. It adds breathtaking grandeur to an already scenic valley, and its careful design by A. Burton Cohen restates its original purpose, to navigate a winding and hilly terrain. The Tunkahannock Creek Viaduct is still used by freight train lines regularly.
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Things to know:
Region: Pocono
Fun facts: English translations of the Native American Tunkhannock vary, including "meeting of the waters," "small stream," "wilderness stream," and "full of timber."
Elevation: 692 feet
Average population: 713
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