Gribblenation

When I’m not on the clock helping to build or maintain the latest generation of bridges in the New York metro area, you can typically find me out and about documenting our nation’s many great bridge structures from coast to coast. While I’ve had the thrill of seeing all of this country’s greatest engineering achievements in-person over the last ten years of travel, it’s also true that some of my personal favorite discoveries are the ones well off the beaten path and far away from the established list of “Greatest Hits” everyone in road/bridge enthusiasm tends to want to talk about. Built in 1905 by the New Jersey Bridge Company of Manasquan, NJ, this charming little steel swing bridge is located along New Bridge Road (County Route 623) as it spans Alloway Creek in rural Salem County, NJ not far from the northern reaches of the Delaware Bay. (The name “Alloway” is derived from the name of a local Native American chief in colonial times, known as “Allowas”.) It was built as a center-be...

  Located along Van Buren County Route J40 and part of the Villages of Van Buren , the small southeastern Iowa village of Bentonsport on the Des Moines River was once an important port for Des Moines River steamers. Tree covered hills encompass the little valley in which Bentonsport lies, and across the river in Vernon, only the spires of the two white churches and a few houses along the shore are visible. At one time, the town of Bentonsport had a population of over 500 residents. Bentonsport was thriving when the State of Iowa was born and the village still retains the atmosphere of years gone by. Mormon craftsmen that were heading west helped construct some of its buildings. Today, you can explore a quieter Bentonsport, between the historic buildings, the ruins of old mills along the Des Moines River, stroll across an iron truss bridge that is more than a century old which once served motor vehicle traffic, or just sit on the riverbank and imagine the sight of a steamboat coming...