{"nrhp_refnum":"80002598","name":"Double-Span Whipple Bowstring Truss Bridge","other_names":["Shaw Bridge"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Van Wyck Lane","address_restricted":false,"city":"Claverack","county":"Columbia County","state":"NY","lat":42.21521727100003,"lon":-73.72880680699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-04-17","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A double-span Whipple bowstring iron truss bridge, known as Shaw Bridge, carrying Van Wyck Lane over Claverack Creek in Claverack, Columbia County, New York. It was built in 1870 by John D. Hutchinson of Troy.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is of outstanding importance to American engineering and transportation technology. It embodies the segmental arch truss developed by Squire Whipple and is described as the only known surviving double-span example of its type in New York and the United States. It is also among the best preserved Whipple patent bridges and remains in use on its original site.","narrative":"Carrying Van Wyck Lane over Claverack Creek, this double-span iron bridge dates to 1870 and is known locally as Shaw Bridge. Two identical cast and wrought-iron bowstring trusses rest on limestone abutments and a central limestone pier, giving an overall length of 162 feet. A cast legend on the top chord names J.D. Hutchinson, Builder, Troy, N.Y., 1870. The design follows the segmental arch truss patented by Squire Whipple, an early American bridge engineer who published a theoretical treatise on bridge building in 1847. Hutchinson was one of many small New York ironworks producing Whipple's prefabricated bridges. The crossing lies on the former New York and Albany post road and may have been erected by the State of New York. It was considered significant as the only known double-span Whipple bowstring bridge surviving in the nation, still on its original site, largely unaltered, and open to light vehicles under a four-ton limit.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"John D. Hutchinson","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in an excellent state of preservation and unaltered, in limited use as a vehicular bridge with a four-ton load limit.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:42.213421-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/80002598.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002598/6c53a2bdb7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002598/6c53a2bdb7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Daniel Case","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shaw_Bridge,_Claverack,_NY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Daniel Case</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shaw_Bridge,_Claverack,_NY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75316990","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaw_Bridge","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7491148"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/columbia-county/double-span-whipple-bowstring-truss-bridge-80002598/"}