An engineering marvel of the 1920s has now entered its second century of service. The New York State Bridge Authority (NYSBA) announced that the Bear Mountain Bridge, the first Hudson River vehicular crossing south of Albany, is officially 100 years old.
The Bear Mountain Bridge was originally dedicated on November 26, 1924 and opened to the general public a day later on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 1924. It was a groundbreaking engineering achievement for its time, as the first Hudson River vehicular bridge in the region and the first suspension bridge with a concrete deck. For a brief period, it also held the title of “bridge with the longest suspended central span in the world.” Many consider the innovations with the Bear Mountain Bridge to have spurred a boom in bridge building in New York State and the entire country in the years following.
The bridge was originally built by a private enterprise, the Bear Mountain Hudson River Bridge Company. It was constructed in less than two years without a single loss of life. In September 1940, the New York State Bridge Authority acquired the bridge, making it NYSBA’s southernmost bridge. In 2018, the span received the ceremonial designation of Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bear Mountain Bridge. Today, the bridge is often considered a symbol of the Hudson Valley and is arguably one of the region’s most photographed structures. It serves as the Hudson River crossing for the Appalachian Trail and as a gateway to nearby state parks and recreational lands.
NYSBA marked the occasion with a brief ceremony on Sunday, November 24, featuring a brass quintet from the West Point Band and a ceremonial motorcade with cars and motorcycles from throughout the decades. As an homage to the original dedication ceremony in 1924, a new centennial plaque was unveiled that will be installed on the side of the bridge’s Administration Building. This new plaque celebrates the Bear Mountain Bridge, honoring “the innovators who built it, the hard-working men and women who maintain it, and the people who cross it every day.”
Leadership from partner agencies also joined the day’s activities celebrating this momentous occasion.
This past year, other events have taken place celebrating the bridge, including: a time capsule dedication to commemorate the start of construction; a website devoted to the centennial, nysba.ny.gov/bmb100, with archival materials and information about centennial-related events; opportunities for the public to share photos and memories of the bridge on social media using the hashtag #BMB100; a recreation of the end of BMB construction photograph from 1924, sponsored by Historic Bridges of the Hudson Valley (HBHV) and featuring NYSBA staff, retirees and local partners; celebratory banners hung at all NYSBA facilities; and light pole banners at the bridge sponsored by New York Stewart International Airport and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
As well, there has been a Purple Heart Day breakfast for veterans, in homage to the bridge’s ceremonial name also sponsored in part by HBHV; a paint and learn event at Fort Montgomery State Historic Site; “Bridges to Parks” hike at the bridge and nearby facilities operated by New York State Parks; online pop-up shops featuring BMB100-themed merchandise; an international bridge engineering conference at West Point, with the bridge centennial as a focal point; and a documentary, created and produced by HBHV, Bear Mountain Bridge; the First 100 Years, which premiered at the Paramount Theater in Peekskill on Nov. 24.