When New York's Most Dangerous Waterway was Bridged (The History of Hell Gate Bridge)

The Hell Gate Bridge, originally the New York Connecting Railroad Bridge[2] or the East River Arch Bridge, is a 1,017-foot (310 m) steel through arch railroad bridge in New York City. Originally built for four tracks, the bridge currently carries two tracks of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor and one freight track across the Hell Gate, a strait of the East River, between Astoria in Queens and Randalls and Wards Islands in Manhattan.

The arch across the Hell Gate is the largest of three bridges that form the Hell Gate railroad viaduct. An inverted bowstring truss bridge with four 300-foot (91.4 m) spans crosses the Little Hell Gate, a former strait that is now filled in, and a 350-foot (106.7 m) fixed truss bridge crosses the Bronx Kill, a strait now narrowed by fill. Together with approaches, the bridges are more than 17,000 feet (3.2 mi; 5.2 km) long.[4] The designs of the Tyne Bridge in Newcastle, England, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge in New South Wales, Australia, were derived from the Hell Gate Bridge.[5]

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[map]

When I was a kid in the 70s we’d take the Tri-Borough bridge to Queens to see my grandfather. On the way we’d see GG1s electric trains crossing the Hells Gate Bridge. What a sight it was. Probably one of the most foreboding bridges I’d ever seen.

[lyfandeth]

You forget to mention that the US Army Corp of Engingeers literally undermined 9 acres under the Hell Gate passage. In what was the largest explosion of its time, they dropped the river bottom some twenty feet, destroyed two islands, and made the waters of the Hell Gate easy to navigate. The explosion shook lower Manhattan and was extensively written up.

[cloneNK]

I watched trains on it in the 1960's with my grandfather. He would sit by his bedroom window with a cup of coffee, biscuits, and 1010 WINS on the radio. That would be my dream.

[nycurbanist]

I live right by Astoria park, I love walking my dog under the two bridges and along the water, it never gets old. Hell Gate is just this beautiful old towering structure that you feel like time has left behind (until the Acela train zips by over it) and then you go under mighty Triboro. Very underrated park.

[georgebrill]

I never went over the Hell Gate bridge, but I've been under it a couple of hundred times at least.  
Worked on a tug in NY for 38 yrs.. When I first started, I was told to never stand out on deck going under that bridge. The kids would get up there and throw anything they could find down on the boat. That included a track spike the deckhand found out on the deck.

[joefin]

I was a construction manager for a pilot project on the Triborough bridge and prepared the ship clearance drawings and rescue procedures foor any worker falling to the water. I also was a rowing coach at Manhattan College and brought the crews down to the swirling waters of Hell Gate. 1984-85.

[jstoney]

Worked as a Structural Steel Inspector in NYC for 25 years and one of my Best jobs was the Annual Inspection of the Hell Gate Bridge...remember tapping every rivet to ensure they were good and overseeing the replacement of any that failed with 120K 3/4" HS Bolts. Also did complete refirb of AT& T Radio Towers at 6th Ave& Canal Street after 9-11!

[Melbournelost]

In 2011 I toured the US and caught a train from Boston to New York. Much to my surprise on the approach to New York I saw to my amazement a bridge that looked like a smaller version of the Sydney Harbour bridge. Anyway, it’s something in common with our beautiful countries. 😊👍🏻 🇦🇺🇺🇸

[thespy]

MetroNorth will also begin to use the Hell Gate for trains running from NY and Ct on the New Haven line to Moynihan Station, with new stops in the Bronx. Hopefully this upgrade to NYC's amazing public transit system will be on line in the next 3 years.

[charlescrawford]

Henry Hornbostel was the architect for the Hell Gate bridge. His initial tower design for the bridge was a more refined Beaux Arts composition. The project’s budget couldn’t accommodate this plan, so Hornbostel then devised the simpler yet more powerful design of two Roman towers we see today.
The curve of the bridge approach was more to align and connect with the New Haven’s Harlem River Branch at Oak Point in the Bronx and to provide the necessary grades (5%) for efficient rail operation.
The piers for the bridge approaches where originally to be steel lattice work construction but were revised to be smooth concrete structures to address the Asylum’s concern that steel lattice piers could be used by inmates as a means of escape.
The bridge remains one of the strongest steel arch bridges in the world. Thanks for another super video!

[Supervillainmc]

Awesome Job. That Bridge always fascinated me. Growing up 1/4-1/2 mile away from it. In the seventies, under some sort of city construction procedure, I got into one of the entrances up the spiral staircase to the to facade on the Astoria Queens side. I never forget how damp it was and the East River Smell. Thank You For Posting this..

[paulanthony]

I live in NYC and run/ bike by the bridge all the time. A lot of people call it "Hell's Gate" for some reason.. maybe confusing it with "Hell's Kitchen".. or "Randalls/ Wards Island"..was hoping the video would explain that lol

[luiszuluaga]

I have lived in New York City my entire life and this bridge never fails to capture my fascination. It is awesome to consider, it never tires the eyes and most importantly, it is functional and necessary.

[folness]

Excellent video, many thanks. The miles-long approach to the bridge (to minimize the slope) is equally impressive.

[kevinkern]

Love the Hell Gate Bridge! If you take any Amtrak train north/east of New York City, be sure to sit on the left side of the train for spectacular views of the skyline as you climb the approach. There's a reason Amtrak loves taking publicity photos of its Northeast Corridor trains on the bridge. I'm not sure you could call its accommodation of rail traffic exclusively a "flaw" of the bridge. Sure, it sees less traffic now than when it was built, but it still sees plenty of trains. In fact, it could be getting busier in the near future when the completion of the East Side Access project at Grand Central would allow Metro North to reroute some New Haven Line trains to Penn Station via the bridge. I'd be interested to see how they would have incorporated road traffic into the bridge. The two approaches are extremely long to keep the incline slight enough for main line heavy rail. This and the fact it cuts through Queens without regard to the street grid would make building access ramps a challenge. The bridge's structure would also seem to preclude adding a second deck. It's a moot point now as the Triborough Bridges parallel the Hell Gate closely.

[MikeP]

2:44 Those are the Harlem and East Rivers --- technically tidal estuary and strait --- but definitely not the Hudson.

[martinsulat]

I first became aware of this magnificent bridge when at thirteen, back in 73' I git into antique toy train collecting.
Lionel had made and marketed a Standard Gauge model of it back in the 1920's...

[jamesorlando]

As a New Hampshire native in NYC who visits my family frequently, I use the Hell Gate Bridge all the time to go visit my family! In fact I rode across it yesterday

[carmineriganti]

I am in awe of the old NY bridges each with their own design. I could tell which one they are. not like todays that all look the same.

[jetsons]

Randall's Island had really changed, that could be a video on its own.... Thanks for