This 400-foot trolley bridge was built in 1908, for the Shelburne Falls & Colrain Street Railway. It was built of paved concrete by Italian laborers recruited in New York City. In the 1890s, trolley fever spread throughout Western Massachusetts, reaching Shelburne Falls in 1896. The trolley line initially stayed on one side of the river, transporting workers, some of whom were German or Irish immigrants, to and from the mills and factories. The construction of this bridge allowed freight from the railroad cars at the Boston & Maine Railroad – New Haven station in Buckland to be transported to Shelburne quicker and easier and vice versa. It also provided easy transportation for locally produced goods such as milk, apples, cider, and vinegar. The trolley boom died down with the widespread excitement over the next transportation wonder, the automobile, and by 1926 this trolley line was out of business. Three years later the Shelburne Falls Women’s Club transformed this bridge into the “Bridge of Flowers.”
Frank W. Swallow Post Card Company, Incorporated, photographer. Electric Car Bridge over Deerfield River, Shelburne Falls, Mass. Photograph. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/1999-03-0075/. Accessed on November 23, 2024.
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