12 replies to this topic

[John Rich]

Took a little trip in my canoe, and photographed the remains of an 1882 railroad bridge that formerly crossed the Brazos River, between San Felipe and the present day Interstate 10 bridge. From what I can figure out, this was the Texas Western narrow gauge line, which ran from somewhere (anyone know?) to Sealy. The line died out as soon as it was built, because it was incompatible with other regular gauge lines, so rail cars couldn't be switched to other lines.

First up, three photos of a pair of pilings, consisting of steel/iron tubes, about 6' in diameter, filled with concrete. These would have been embedded in a concrete footing and standing upright, but have fallen over onto their side on the river bottom.

These items are visible only because of the current very-low water level in the river. I think they are normally submerged.

Attached Files

•  01 Pilings 1.JPG   173.57K   18 downloads
•  01 Pilings 2.JPG   184.71K   11 downloads
•  01 Pilings 3.JPG   192.42K   8 downloads

Edited by John Rich, Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 5:00 PM.

[John Rich]

Next up are photos of bridge sections that are exposed above the water. I believe these sections are probably laying upside-down. The flat part facing the water must have been the rail bed, while the arched part facing up would have been bracing on the underside. The bridge section is about 16' long, judging by the length of my canoe alonside it. The big nuts on the plate are 4" square. The odd part is that hinged joint with many stringers extending from it. Obviously this was some kind of articulation, but how and why? One theory is that the bridge was a draw bridge or swing bridge to allow steamboats to pass by on the river. Or maybe these were just superstructure support, and were hinged to allow flexing of the bridge as a train passed over. Anyone know?

If anyone can provide any insight on what this bridge might have looked like, or the design of it, I would appreciate it.

Attached Files

•  02 Section.JPG   147.55K   17 downloads
•  03 Joint 1.JPG   155.23K   13 downloads
•  04 Section.JPG   155.47K   16 downloads
•  05 Section.JPG   189.56K   11 downloads
•  06 Section.JPG   219.71K   13 downloads

Edited by John Rich, Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 5:37 PM.

[John Rich]

First image: U.S. Geological Service topographical map of the area, showing an old railroad grade approaching the river from the northeast, and then disappearing at the river. Oddly, there is no trace of it ever continuing out the west side of the river. Was this bridge literally the end of the line?

Second: An identical pair of iron pilings, still embedded in concrete, underneath the current railroad bridge over the Brazos at Interstate-10. Apparently from an earlier railroad bridge, which was replaced by the one that is there now. This current bridge is also still pretty old - 1910 I think, and still active.

Third: Finishing my canoe trip underneath I-10, and pondering those odd articulated/hinged joints, I looked up under the modern concrete bridge, and saw this! A hinged joint which connects the horizontal steel rails to the vertical concrete pillars. So, whatever the principle behind this kind of hinged bridge connection, it's been around for quite a while, as we're still using it today.

Attached Files

•  30 Topo map.jpg   118.86K   18 downloads
•  10 Old bridge.JPG   218.48K   14 downloads
•  11 I-10 joint.JPG   143.63K   8 downloads

Edited by John Rich, Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 5:33 PM.

[TheNiche]

John Rich, on Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 5:14 PM, said:

First image: U.S. Geological Service topographical map of the area, showing an old railroad grade approaching the river from the northeast, and then disappearing at the river. Oddly, there is no trace of it ever continuing out the west side of the river. Was this bridge literally the end of the line?

Nope. Use Google Earth. You can clearly make out the old railroad right-of-way. On the west side of the river, it bends to the west southwest and continues on along Meyer Road into San Felipe. There, it aligns briefly with Sealy Road, which takes it on a heading into Sealy. Not coincidentally, where it enters Sealy, there is still a street called Sealy Road. And from that, you can see how it would've connected with the broader rail network.

[John Rich]

TheNiche, on Tuesday, September 6, 2011 at 9:49 PM, said:

Nope. Use Google Earth. You can clearly make out the old railroad right-of-way. On the west side of the river, it bends to the west southwest and continues on along Meyer Road into San Felipe. There, it aligns briefly with Sealy Road, which takes it on a heading into Sealy. Not coincidentally, where it enters Sealy, there is still a street called Sealy Road. And from that, you can see how it would've connected with the broader rail network.

Looking at my topo map again. On the left edge it shows an "old railroad grade" coming from the west into what is now downtown San Felipe, and dead-ends at FM 1458. The next trace on the map is the one I've already shown coming out the east side of the Brazos River, where part of what is now Clemons Switch Rd. is built on top of it. The topo map mysteriously shows no trace of a railroad grade between those two points, a distance of about 3 miles. Hmmm... My map is dated 1960. The trace of that grade seems to have mostly just vanished from cultivation and development.

Aerial view attached. Dashed red lines are just above where the topo map shows an old railroad grade. You can clearly see overgrowth in straight lines along those lines. The dashed blue line is where I surmise the trace of the rail grade which connects those two points must have run. There are some places along there with nice smooth curves like a rail line would have, but other places bear no trace whatsoever.

Thanks for making me take a closer look at that.

Attached Files

•  31c Aerial map.jpg   190.97K   20 downloads

Edited by John Rich, Wednesday, September 7, 2011 at 7:54 PM.

[NenaE]

http://www.towers.tx...com/163/163.htm

...this link, with map at bottom, shows the Texas Western, as well as other lines.

http://www.tshaonlin.../articles/eqtpg

...another link w/ info. about the line, but not anything specific to the actual bridge construction.

http://www.texasesca...exasBridges.htm

and one more...site, talks about Texas bridge construction types, someone did great research on this site, includes old b/w pics of bridges.
I couldn.t find anything specific to that particular bridge, but maybe someone else can.

* Just a thought, but maybe the missing track runs through the Pattison property.

Edited by NenaE, Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 9:39 AM.

[DistribAire P.E.]

thats pretty cool. this drought sucks big time, but it has allowed alot of interesting stuff to pop up in the rivers, lakes, and etc.

[John Rich]

NenaE: Excellent and informative resources - thank you!

[NenaE]

http://texashistory....e%3Aimage_photo

I'm beginning to think the original bridge that you found may have been destroyed by the flood of 1899, seen in the above pictures (even though the photos are of the Richmond-Rosenberg area bridge). Right after the flood, the hurricane of 1900 arrived.
Don't have any direct proof, though.

http://bridgehunter....waller/bh49393/

This bridge was built in 1906. Is this the one that crosses at the same point?

Edited by NenaE, Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 2:38 PM.

[John Rich]

NenaE, on Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 2:33 PM, said:

http://texashistory....e%3Aimage_photo

I'm beginning to think the original bridge that you found may have been destroyed by the flood of 1899, seen in the above pictures (even though the photos are of the Richmond-Rosenberg area bridge). Right after the flood, the hurricane of 1900 arrived.
Don't have any direct proof, though.

http://bridgehunter....waller/bh49393/

This bridge was built in 1906. Is this the one that crosses at the same point?

Good theory on the flood - that could have done it. The Brazos is known for either being low or flooding, with no in-between stage.

The 1906 railroad bridge is the one that is adjacent to the Interstate-10 highway bridge over the Brazos.
The 1882 bridge in my photos is about 3.5 miles upstream from there.
That's river miles, counting all the bends in the river - not straight-line distance.

[NenaE]

This is an interesting subject, one I've enjoyed learning more about, today. Thank you for sharing it.
The reading I've done on San Felipe & Sealy has been enlightening. Apparently, everyone moved to the railroad town, Sealy, after San Felipe refused to grant a major railroad right of way through it's land, they only offered a small piece of land.
My past knowledge of San Felipe have been in relation to its link to Harrisburg, Texas history.
Railroads are so much a part of Texas history.

Edited by NenaE, Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 5:11 PM.

[John Rich]

NenaE, on Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 5:04 PM, said:

This is an interesting subject, one I've enjoyed learning more about, today. Thank you for sharing it.
The reading I've done on San Felipe & Sealy has been enlightening. Apparently, everyone moved to the railroad town, Sealy, after San Felipe refused to grant a major railroad right of way through it's land, they only offered a small piece of land.
My past knowledge of San Felipe have been in relation to its link to Harrisburg, Texas history.
Railroads are so much a part of Texas history.

Yes, San Felipe was the beginning of Texas, where Stephen Austin handed out Mexican land grants to "the original 300" settlers. And before the railroads spread their web across the countryside, the steamboats and rivers were the modern day equivalent of 18-wheeler trucks and super-highways, transporting goods and people from and to the coast and the interior. There were 12 steamboats sunk on the Brazos River alone, plying their trade on its waters.

Here's a book review I've written for the Houston Canoe Club on this steamboat period of Houston history:
"Sandbars and Sternwheelers"

Edited by John Rich, Friday, September 9, 2011 at 10:29 AM.

[NenaE]

http://www.tshaonlin.../articles/hnt27
my grandfather was born in this East Texas town. RR's bypassing put an end to it.

http://www.texasesca...oustonBB102.htm
Reference to the Allen Brothers of Houston fame, buying land there, as well.

That book on steamboats looks interesting.