An article in this morning's Providence Journal revealed a controversy brewing over the subject of today's photo. This is the Seekonk River Drawbridge, built in 1908 and used to service the old Providence, Warren, Bristol Railroad. Passenger services on that line ended in the 1930s, and the bridge fell into disuse. The Journal states that the drawbridge was last lowered in the 1970s although I'm unable to confirm that anyplace. Certainly there was no rail traffic crossing the bridge then, so I'm not sure why they would have lowered it several decades after it was last needed. Regardless of the date, though, the bridge is now stuck in the upright position and has been mechanically stuck for at least 40 years, if not longer. There are now discussions over whether or not it should be dismantled, and therein rests the brewing controversy. Some, like myself, consider it an historic landmark that should be preserved. Others consider it an eyesore and want it removed. As it costs nothing to leave it in place, it's my hope that the financial argument will win and this piece of Rhode Island's transportation history will remain intact for the next generation to study.
I decided to get a bit cuter than normal with today's processing. Giving the historical significance of the bridge, I went with a deep sepia processing technique. I started with a sepia toned base filter in Topaz b&w FX, and then adjusted contrast, adaptive exposure, the various color sensitivity sliders, and boost black. A levels adjustment was added in PSE.
I've always wondered why that bridge is always up, so thanks for posting this! I figured it was stuck from disuse, but interesting to know the backstory!
