Bridges

Bridges. . , Originally, Port Stanley residents had to use small boats to cross Kettle Creek. In 1843, the Province of Canada built a swing bridge across the Harbour. This bridge would allow vessels to travel north of the bridge if the creek was deepened enough for that purpose. However, the deepening never occurred, and the Commissioner of Public Works abandoned the bridge. In 1866, the bridge was carried away by spring floods., In 1881, a bridge made of steel girders of the Howe Truss design was erected over Kettle Creek by James Finney. With one 150-foot (46m) span and a 50-foot (15m) span, this sturdy bridge lasted until the Province of Ontario decided to replace it with the lift bridge you see today., Tragedy occurred during the lift bridge construction. A huge cofferdam (a temporary wooden structure) collapsed. The St. Thomas Times-Journal reported on December 20, 1937:, "Without warning, the huge cofferdam constructed in midstream of Kettle Creek, nearly 30 feet under the water level, collapsed. One moment the cofferdam was in the center of Kettle Creek, the men working at the bottom; the next moment it had disappeared in a terrifying crash and an angry rush and swirl of dark, frigid waters. Rushing, swirling waters flooded the broken pilings and bracing timbers. Down in this cauldron, bobbing among the broken timbers and ice cakes like human corks appeared the five survivors.", Eight men were killed., The lift bridge was completed at a cost of $250,000 and officially opened on May 15, 1939. When the tablet memorializing the eight victims of the cofferdam collapse was unveiled, the Times-Journal reported that, "Tears dimmed the eyes and coursed down the cheeks of many spectators as the band played, 'Abide with Me'.", The two 70 foot (21m) spans of this bascule-type steel bridge can be raised to an angle of 87 degrees. Counterweights continuously balance the spans through their upward swing. The bridge is so finely counterbalanced that it can, if necessary, be raised and lowered manually.