Centennial Bridge (Center Valley, Pennsylvania)

Centennial Bridge was a historic stone arch bridge located in Center Valley, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. It was built in 1876, and was a 233 ft bridge, with three 23 ft, horseshoe shaped arches. It crossed Saucon Creek.

19th century
The proposal for the bridge was created by local farmers for a safer means to transport their cattle and dairy products to market. The east side of Center Valley was known as Milk Town because of its many dairy farms. The west side of Center Valley had a rail station part of the North Pennsylvania Railroad which opened on December 26, 1856. The two sides of the valley where separated by the Saucon Creek which proved to be a formidable hazard, especially in poor weather.

In 1874, the Allentown & Coopersburg Turnpike opened and sparked further interest in building a bridge. August 2, 1875, the Lehigh County grand jury recommended to county Commissioners Jacob Leiby (of the nearby Jacob Leiby Farm), Jesse Solliday and Daniel Lauer that the bridge be built. That September 13, the commissioners allocated $1,200 for the bridge. The turnpike's owner, Enos Erdman, was contracted for most of the construction and the bridge opened on September 18, 1876. A local legend persists that Penal labour was used to build the bridge, although all records point to contracted laborers under the employ of Erdmen.

20th century
Repairs were made to the Centennial Bridge in 1918 and in 1933. County inspectors described the bridge as being in “fair shape.” In 1936, the state Highways Department took over responsibility for the bridge from the county. Unlike the surrounding roads, the bridge was never expanded or renovated to handle large motor vehicles. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. After 116 years of use, on April 2, 1992, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation closed the bridge after a large crack was discovered in the supporting arches and the bridge was deemed unsafe. The bridge was demolished in 2013.