Tioronda Bridge
Why it's listed
Tioronda Bridge carries South Avenue across Fishkill Creek in the southwestern part of Beacon, New York. It is an iron bowstring truss bridge of three spans, 110 feet long overall, resting on abutments and two piers of mortared random ashlar stone. Its arched upper chord is a tube of two riveted semi-oval iron plates, the feature covered by its patent. The Ohio Bridge Company of Cleveland built it between about 1869 and 1873, using a design patented in 1867 by John Glass, George P. Schneider and William B. Rezner. Before this bridge was identified in 1973, the design was known only from a patent model at the Smithsonian. The original deck and floor beams were later replaced with I-beam stringers that now carry traffic. The bridge is valued as one of the oldest surviving vehicular iron bridges in New York and as a product of a short-lived post-Civil War firm. It also gave mills on the east bank access to Hudson River shipping.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is among the oldest vehicular iron bridges surviving in New York State and one of the few survivors of the post-Civil War boom in iron truss bridge construction. It is also one of the few nineteenth-century iron bridges for which a patent model survives. The bridge helped open the east bank of the Fishkill to factory development and settlement, contributing to Beacon's growth.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 76001213, listed October 8, 1976. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | South Ave., Beacon |
|---|---|
| County | Dutchess County |
| Listed | October 8, 1976 |
| Reference number | 76001213 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | c. 1869-1873 |
| Architect / builder | Ohio Bridge Company |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Engineering, Transportation, Invention |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed in good condition and still in use as a public road bridge; the original deck and floor beams were replaced by I-beam stringers, so the trusses now serve only as guide rails. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.48857, -73.97395 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 76001213.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7808745
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.