Rockville Bridge
Why it's listed
Across the Susquehanna River just north of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a four-track railroad bridge runs about 3280 feet on forty-eight stone arch spans of seventy feet each. Built between 1900 and 1902 for the Pennsylvania Railroad, it uses cut-stone voussoirs, ashlar pier faces, and about 100,000 cubic yards of masonry. The bridge replaced an earlier double-track iron structure built in 1877 that was judged inadequate for the traffic on the Main Line. The eastern half was built by Drake and Stratton of Philadelphia and the western half by H.S. Kerbaugh, Inc., also of Philadelphia, at a total cost of about $1,096,000. Completed by March 30, 1902, it was at that time the longest stone masonry arch railroad bridge in the world. Its springing line sits near the level of the great flood of 1889. It remains in service with the Penn Central Railroad.
Significance in brief: At the time of construction it was the longest stone masonry arch railroad bridge in the world. It replaced an inadequate double-track iron bridge on the Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad and remains in use by the Penn Central Railroad.
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 75001640, listed August 15, 1975. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 0.5 mi. S of Marysville over Susquehanna River, Marysville |
|---|---|
| County | Dauphin County |
| Listed | August 15, 1975 |
| Reference number | 75001640 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Architect / builder | Drake and Stratton (Philadelphia), eastern half; H.S. Kerbaugh, Inc. (Philadelphia), western half |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use by the Penn Central Railroad; condition marked good. |
| Coordinates | 40.33308, -76.91133 (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 75001640.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q2160784
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.