The Green Island Bridge crosses the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

in New York, connecting Green Island with

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

, passing through Starbuck Island. It opened September 12, 1981.

History

The original

Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad The Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad was chartered on April 14, 1832. It completed between Troy and Ballston Spa on March 19, 1836. The railroad was largely conceived and built by businessmen of Troy in response to Albany's construction of the ...

bridge was a wood-truss

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

built in 1832. On May 10, 1862, it caught fire from the sparks of a passing locomotive and soon fell into the river. Parts of the burning structure, floating with the current, imperiled the steamboats and the smaller craft tied up along the wharves. The devastating wind-driven fire also consumed more than 500 buildings covering of downtown Troy. This bridge was replaced by a second wooden bridge. In 1884 a steel railroad bridge replaced the second wooden bridge. The steel bridge was really two parallel bridges owned by the

Delaware and Hudson Railroad The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP operates D&H ...

. When rail service ended in Troy on July 27, 1963, it was converted for automobile traffic. Until then the northern span was a rail bridge, and the southern span was a toll bridge for cars, trolleys, and pedestrians. It had a lift span added in 1924-25 for river shipping. This bridge failed on March 15, 1977, due to flooding caused by of heavy weekend rains, coupled with melting snows and heavy runoff. The flood-induced scour undermined the lift span pier, causing the western lift tower and roadbed span of the bridge to collapse into the Hudson River. The current Green Island Bridge (shown in the photos) was opened four-and-a-half years later on September 12, 1981. Construction costs topped $23,000,000. The bridge is a

vertical lift bridge A vertical-lift bridge or just lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck. The vertical lift offers several benefits over other movable bridges such as the bascule and sw ...

which is raised only occasionally for river traffic. The two metal-covered frames, which straddle the roadway, house the counterweights and lift mechanisms. The lift bridge joins Troy and Center Island (once known as

Starbuck Island Starbuck Island (or Volunteer Island) is an uninhabited coral island in the central Pacific, and is part of the Central Line Islands of Kiribati. Former names include "Barren Island", "Coral Queen Island", "Hero Island", "Low Island", and " ...

), an island in the river. There is another bridge that connects Center Island with the village of Green Island (which is no longer an island).

References

External links

Historic Photos of Green Island Bridge
(scan down page to "Hudson River Bridge" section)
Green Island Bridge
a

{{Crossings navbox , structure = Crossings , place =

, bridge = Green Island Bridge , bridge signs = , upstream =

Collar City Bridge The Collar City Bridge (also known as the Hoosick Street Bridge) carries NYS Route 7 (NY 7) across the Hudson River connecting Colonie, New York with Troy, by way of passing over Green Island. Though the northern terminus of Interstate ...

, upstream signs = , downstream =

Congress Street Bridge The Congress Street Bridge carries NY 2 across the Hudson River connecting Watervliet, New York with Troy, New York. See also *List of fixed crossings of the Hudson River This is a list of bridges and other crossings of the Hudson River, fr ...

, downstream signs = Vertical lift bridges in New York (state) Bridges over the Hudson River Bridges completed in 1832 Covered bridges in New York (state) Bridges completed in 1884 Bridges completed in 1981 Bridges in Rensselaer County, New York Wooden bridges in New York (state) Road bridges in New York (state) Former toll bridges in New York (state) Girder bridges in the United States