View of the Ausable Chasm Route 9 Bridge

Ausable Chasm Rt. 9 Bridge

2021 Bridgehunter Awards Winner – Bridge Tour USA

Owned By: New York State (Ausable Chasm NY / Keeseville NY)

Built-1934

History of the Route 9 Bridge (Information Collected by Sean Reines)

Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge and View of Rainbow Falls—Site of Keeseville, Ausable Chasm & Lake Champlain Railroad Bridge from 1890-1927

Description

The Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge (completed 1934), with its dramatic soaring steel arched span and distinctive stonework, dominates the scene in the upper part of Ausable Chasm [pronounced Aw-SAY-bull Kaz-‘m] . At about 150 feet above the river, the bridge spans the deepest part of the Chasm and offers spectacular views of 70-foot high Rainbow Falls, one of the most photographed waterfalls in the Adirondacks and all of New York State. From the bridge, you can also see the single lane Old State Road Bridge behind Rainbow Falls, over which Route 9 crossed before 1934. Motorists can park in the parking areas on the southbound end and access/cross the bridge safely using pedestrian walkways on either side.

Through the centuries, crossing the great natural divide known as Ausable Chasm—the narrow, winding 2-mile long chasm of the Ausable River—has been both necessary and difficult.

Bridges have spanned Ausable Chasm since the early 1790s, when intensive settlement of the area began in the aftermath of the American Revolution. Crossing the Chasm was essential for overland movement of people and goods through the area to points north and south, and for the overall growth and development of this region. Over time, bridge crossing locations have changed as the course of the main road across Ausable Chasm—present Route 9—has changed.

Route 9 (now U. S. Highway 9) was the major north-south route connecting Albany and Montreal prior to completion of Interstate 87 in 1967. The highway that came to be called Route 9 was first built by New York State in the early 1800s. So, when the highway took the name “Route 9,” its official designation was “New York State Route 9.” Later, NYS Route 9 became a federal “U. S.” highway. Route 9 has crossed Ausable Chasm at two locations: (1) The present “Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge” and (2) the single lane “Old State Road Bridge” (“old Route 9” bridge). Both bridges exist today at the head of the Chasm, near the Ausable Chasm Welcome Center.

Designed by the State of New York Public Works Department, the Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge was built between 1932 and 1934. The project was funded partly by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal,” a program designed to spur the U.S. economy and provide jobs during the Great Depression. Planners and designers had to meet the engineering challenge of spanning a deep and wide chasm, while also creating a bridge that would be harmonious with its picturesque setting and blend in rather than detract. For the main span, they chose a single 222 foot steel arch. The northern approach consists of two 52 foot stone-faced concrete spans. Stone railings and abutments are made of both granite and the same hard sandstone as the Chasm walls and riverbed. Bidding for the project opened in September 1932, with Burr M. Stark of Hadley, New York awarded the job. Work began on September 19^th of that year. The bridge opened for traffic in September 1933, and the project completed in summer 1934. The Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places for its historical, architectural, and engineering significance.

Before construction of the current Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge, Route 9 crossed the Chasm via the “Old State Road Bridge,” the much smaller one-lane metal (mix of iron and steel) truss bridge that you see behind Rainbow Falls. Built between 1890 and 1900, the Old State Road Bridge lies in the middle of the hamlet of Ausable Chasm, a once thriving 19^th century industrial community first known in the early 1800s as “Adgate Falls” (for Matthew Adgate, who settled here in 1792 and built a sawmill and gristmill) and later, “Birmingham Falls” (after the great 19^th century industrial city in England). The Old State Road (which became Route 9 in the early 1900s) doubled as the community’s main street, with various water-powered factories clustered along the riverbanks on either side of the bridge during the 1800s.

Before the metal version of the Old State Road Bridge, a succession of single lane wooden bridges carried the state highway across the Chasm at that same location, starting in the 1810s. Each wooden bridge deteriorated over time from spray and mist from the falls (no “pressure treated” lumber back then!). Hence the eventual decision to build the more permanent iron bridge.

By the early 1930s, with the “automobile age” in full swing, Route 9 vehicular traffic had increased so much that a larger bridge with straighter approaches was needed. The Old State Road Bridge, a 1-lane light-load structure, and the approaches to it, could no longer handle the traffic volume. Accordingly, officials built the present Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge. The Old State Road Bridge became a secondary crossing that served local traffic until its closure in 2002. The Old State Road Bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places for its historical, architectural, and engineering significance.

Don’t Miss This When Visiting

Tour Ausable Chasm [pronounced “Aw-SAY-bull Kaz-‘m”], one of New York State’s scenic gems and one of the great natural wonders of the northeastern United States. The view from the bridge is free, but you only get a “sneak peak” of this marvelous example of nature’s handiwork. To see more requires paying admission at the Ausable Chasm Welcome Center. And there is a lot to see and experience here. Ausable Chasm is a narrow steep walled canyon about 2 miles long formed by the Ausable River’s powerful flow during the late Ice Age, about 10,000 to 13,000 years ago. The entrance to the Chasm attraction is at the northern end of the bridge and is well-marked by signage. Visit ausablechasm.com for more information. Open to the public since 1870, Ausable Chasm is privately owned and offers a network of walking trails, a scenic boat tour called the “Float Tour,” an “Adventure Trail” via ferrata, and other activities to round out your experience.

The View: What you can see from the Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge:

–Rainbow Falls, 70 foot high cascade.

–“Old State Road Bridge” (the single lane truss bridge behind the falls built between 1890 and 1900), which carried Route 9 across the Chasm before 1934 completion of this bridge.

–The ruins of the stone wheelhouse, or powerhouse, of the Ausable Chasm Horse Nail Works on the left riverbank below the Ausable Chasm Welcome Center. This horseshoe nail factory was built in 1876-77 and closed in 1910.

–Ausable Chasm Welcome Center (atop the left riverbank above wheelhouse ruins), built 1953. The third major “Entrance Building” to serve the Ausable Chasm attraction during its history.

–Rainbow Falls Hydroelectric Plant buildings and components along the right riverbank, which include the power dam behind Rainbow Falls, the Rack House (stone building high up on the right bank), power generating station building (with chateau-style roof along right bank below the falls), and penstocks (2 large tubes that transport water from Rack House to power generating station). The plant began operating in 1926.

–Almost directly below the Ausable Chasm Bridge on each riverbank are stone piers of the Keeseville, Ausable Chasm & Lake Champlain (K, AC & LC) Railroad trestle bridge that crossed Ausable Chasm from 1890-1927.

Related Sites or Experiences

The single lane truss bridge that crosses the Chasm behind Rainbow Falls, known locally as the “Old State Road Bridge.” You can see the Old State Road Bridge from the Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge, or get a closer look by taking Mace Chasm Road/County Road 71, which passes right by the bridge.

The Railroad Bridge . . .The present Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge replaced the Keeseville, Ausable Chasm & Lake Champlain Railroad (K, AC & LC RR) trestle bridge that crossed the Chasm from 1890-1927 at about the same place. This iron bridge, built by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company of East Berlin, Connecticut, had a distinctive cantilevered design to reduce stress on the Chasm walls from the continual passage of trains. You can see the stone support piers of this bridge along each riverbank directly below the current Route 9 bridge.

The railroad bridge served the 5.6 mile K, AC & LC RR, which ran from Port Kent (on Lake Champlain) to Keeseville with a stop at Ausable Chasm. Called a “peanut railroad,” the line served tourists and travelers, and transported goods made in the factories of Ausable Forks, Keeseville, and Ausable Chasm to market. The Ausable Chasm station, which no longer exists, was along the Birmingham Falls/Ausable Chasm community’s main street (“old Route 9”/present Old State Road). At Port Kent, the K, AC & LC connected to the main Albany-to-Montreal passenger rail line and Lake Champlain steamboat service.

Crossing Ausable Chasm was surely the high point of this short ride. Imagine the reactions of wonder, delight, surprise, and perhaps even fright from passengers as their trains passed slowly over the abyss, the dramatic effect enhanced by the fact that the bridge had an open deck with no side girders, beams, or railings to obstruct the view!

The K, AC & LC RR ceased operations in 1924 and the bridge was dismantled in 1927. Five years later, in 1932, work began on the present Route 9 Ausable Chasm Bridge.

Ausable Chasm Rt. 9 Bridge

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