Photographs of the Bridges
Three Sisters Bridges, Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is defined by its rivers – the Allegheny on the north and the Monongahela on the south, converging to form the Ohio. From the downtown area there are at least seven historic bridges that can be walked over the Allegheny to the North Shore neighborhood, four that can be walked over the Monongahela from the south side of downtown, and two more over the Ohio west of downtown. Some of the bridges are not within walking distance of each other, so you would need to drive and park at several individual bridges to hit them all in one day. However, there are a group of bridges clustered near the western end of downtown that can be packaged into a great couple hours of bridge walking.
The central focus of this cluster is known as the Three Sisters – three identical suspension bridges dating from the late 1920s that cross from downtown to North Shore. These bridges each have two names, one for the street it carries, and one as a dedication to a famous former Pittsburgh resident. From west to east, these are the Roberto Clemente Bridge carrying Sixth Street, the Andy Warhol Bridge carrying Seventh Street, and the Rachel Carson Bridge carrying Ninth Street. As may be guessed from these street names, the three bridges are all within a few city blocks of each other. Since they are all large, visually prominent bridges, the sight of three perfectly identical bridges right next to each other is highly unusual.
The bridges were all built in the same timeframe. The Warhol Bridge was first, dating from 1925-26. The Carson Bridge opened in 1927, and the Clemente Bridge was built in 1928. Each bridge is about 1,000 feet long, and about 40 feet high over the river. Each has sidewalks on either side, outside of the support structure. The bridges connect directly into the street system in downtown Pittsburgh, so all have terrific views of the downtown skyline on their south ends.
None of the bridges is elaborately decorated, but none of them is plain, either. Instead, each has a few features that make them appear clean and understated. The bridges display a deliberate theme amongst almost all Pittsburgh bridges in that they are painted bright yellow. The railings are yellow steel-mesh plates between plain yellow posts. The lampposts are modern and spare, with nicely tended flower baskets on each. The bridges are covered with a variety of dedication and historical plaques, including large bronze reliefs dating from the 1920s, and plaques documenting aesthetic, historical preservation, and civil engineering awards.
There is a description of a tour of all of the Pittsburgh bridges, including the Three Sisters, in Chapter 9 of my book, Bridgespotting Part 2: A Guide to Even More Bridges that Connect People, Places, and Times.
