{"nrhp_refnum":"95000544","name":"Deer Creek Bridge, Stewartstown Railroad","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Stewartstown RR tracks over Deer Cr. at Deer Creek Rd., Shrewsbury and Hopewell Townships","address_restricted":false,"city":"Shrewsbury","county":"York County","state":"PA","lat":39.75839055200004,"lon":-76.64821974799997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1995-05-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel girder railroad bridge carrying the Stewartstown Railroad over Deer Creek on the border between Hopewell and Shrewsbury Townships in York County, Pennsylvania. It was built around 1895 and remains in use.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is significant for its riveted steel girders, a construction method that preceded rolled one-piece girders, and for reflecting the economical engineering of a small railroad serving local merchants. It is described as one of three girder bridges built by the railroad, and its stone abutments may survive from an earlier bridge of 1885.","narrative":"A steel girder railroad bridge over Deer Creek, on the border between Hopewell and Shrewsbury Townships in York County, Pennsylvania, built around 1895 by the Stewartstown Railroad Company. Two sets of double riveted I-beams rest on stone abutments that also act as retaining walls for the railroad grade. The bridge is 34 1/2 feet long and 9 feet wide, with notched wooden ties and rails fastened on top. Riveted girders, assembled from several separate pieces, were a construction method that preceded rolled one-piece girders, and few bridges in York County use them. The abutments may date to an earlier bridge built around 1885, so the structure may reflect two periods of railroad construction. The railroad carried freight from merchants east of New Freedom Borough to its connection with the Northern Central Railway. Its simple, inexpensive design reflects the limited capital of a small line. The bridge remains in good condition and continues to carry freight and excursion trains.","period_of_significance":"c. 1895 - 1940","architect_builder":"Stewartstown Railroad Company (builder)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still in use today and in good condition; the only visible problem is cracking and loosening of mortar joints in the abutments.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:37.407078-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/95000544.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/95000544/911ee74ed8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/95000544/911ee74ed8-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Purple pirouette","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deer_Creek_Bridge,_Stewartstown_Railroad,_Hopewell_Twp_PA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Purple pirouette</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:Deer_Creek_Bridge,_Stewartstown_Railroad,_Hopewell_Twp_PA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994095","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deer_Creek_Bridge,_Stewartstown_Railroad","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5250711"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/york-county/deer-creek-bridge-stewartstown-railroad-95000544/"}