Bridge in Portage Township
Why it's listed
Built in 1832 over Bens Creek in Cassandra Borough, Cambria County, this single 18-foot stone arch bridge carries a state road over the creek. It is a circular arch built of rock-faced coursed ashlar, with abutments and intrados of the same stone and wedge-shaped voussoirs. The structure is associated with the Allegheny Portage Railroad, which opened between 1832 and 1834 and linked the eastern and western divisions of the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal by hauling canal boats over the Allegheny Mountains on a series of inclined planes. The bridge is one of two stone arch examples on the railroad included in this group of nominations, and it is one of two early ashlar-built examples in the group. Its significance rests mainly on transportation history and engineering. The nominated area is a rectangle about 18 by 30 feet, covering the superstructure and substructure and the outside corners of the wing walls, and totals less than one acre.
Significance in brief: The nomination states the bridge is unusual chiefly for its historical association with the Allegheny Portage Railroad, a system of inclined planes that carried canal boats over the Allegheny Mountains and linked the eastern and western divisions of the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal. It is described as a handsome example of a circular arch railroad bridge and one of two early examples of ashlar construction in the thematic group. Transportation and engineering are the areas of significance.
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 88000782, listed June 22, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | PA 53 over Bens Creek, Oil City |
|---|---|
| County | Cambria County |
| Listed | June 22, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88000782 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1832 |
| Architectural style | Semi-circular stone arch |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.40242, -78.63922 (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 88000782.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4966370
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.