masshysteria
Member
I've heard a rumor that there was some stabilization work going on at the old stone bridges on the abandoned B&A line in Chester and Middlefield. Our Scout troop took a hike into there on Saturday, and didn't see anything being done. Does anyone have any info on possible work being done there?
About 10 yrs.ago, there was some funding around for stabilization work, through the PVTA. I attended a couple of meetings, but nothing other than some trail work to access the area became of it. It pains me to see the rather large trees that are growing into the rock abuttments, and that's where most of the damage is being done. The 3rd bridge down (heading east from Bancroft) is in the worst shape. Some of the foundation blocks have been knocked out and it looks pretty precarious. I'm afraid there's not alot of hope for that bridge, given that it's 30 ft away from an active CSX bridge, putting it in CSX's right-of-way. CSX has absolutely no interest in preserving this piece of history, nor will they allow legal access for repairs to proceed.
If you've never seen these bridges, they were built between 1839 and 1841 on the west branch of the Westfield River. There were origionally 8 bridges, all made of handcut stone. As a matter of fact, CSX still uses 4 of them on their present route. The 3 abandoned bridges are about 90 ft. high and have stone abuttment walls that are hundredes of feet long. They will literally take your breath away with the size of them. Ten years ago, the origional scope of the work was to remove all of the trees from the walls, replace any washed out rocks from the base of the bridges, and to even get a crane in there to hoist the edging stones back up to the top.
To access the bridges, you can come in from the little hamlet of Bancroft, which is part of Becket, and head east along the RR tracks. Or come in from the Middlefield Rd. in Chester and head west. It's about 8 miles round trip. Beautiful country with gorgeous views of the river.
If anyone has heard of any efforts to save these bridges, let me know. I really would like to get involved again. Those bridges have stood there for over 160 years, and I would hate to see them destroyed through neglect. Thanks! Tom
About 10 yrs.ago, there was some funding around for stabilization work, through the PVTA. I attended a couple of meetings, but nothing other than some trail work to access the area became of it. It pains me to see the rather large trees that are growing into the rock abuttments, and that's where most of the damage is being done. The 3rd bridge down (heading east from Bancroft) is in the worst shape. Some of the foundation blocks have been knocked out and it looks pretty precarious. I'm afraid there's not alot of hope for that bridge, given that it's 30 ft away from an active CSX bridge, putting it in CSX's right-of-way. CSX has absolutely no interest in preserving this piece of history, nor will they allow legal access for repairs to proceed.
If you've never seen these bridges, they were built between 1839 and 1841 on the west branch of the Westfield River. There were origionally 8 bridges, all made of handcut stone. As a matter of fact, CSX still uses 4 of them on their present route. The 3 abandoned bridges are about 90 ft. high and have stone abuttment walls that are hundredes of feet long. They will literally take your breath away with the size of them. Ten years ago, the origional scope of the work was to remove all of the trees from the walls, replace any washed out rocks from the base of the bridges, and to even get a crane in there to hoist the edging stones back up to the top.
To access the bridges, you can come in from the little hamlet of Bancroft, which is part of Becket, and head east along the RR tracks. Or come in from the Middlefield Rd. in Chester and head west. It's about 8 miles round trip. Beautiful country with gorgeous views of the river.
If anyone has heard of any efforts to save these bridges, let me know. I really would like to get involved again. Those bridges have stood there for over 160 years, and I would hate to see them destroyed through neglect. Thanks! Tom
