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By Christen M. Stroh

For more than 100 years, people traveling from Washington County to Westmoreland County did so by way of the Donora-Webster Bridge. The bridge connected the communities of Donora on the western bank of the Monongahela River and Webster on the eastern bank, and even those who weren’t using the bridge could see its five spans and lattice work from either Route 837 or Route 906 on either side of the river.

The 107-year-old Donora-Webster Bridge was imploded on July 1, 2015 at 10 a.m. Photo by Michele Beresh

The Donora-Webster Bridge is now no longer a much-traversed route or even a viewpoint on the horizon, as on July 1, 2015 at 10 a.m., the bridge was demolished during a scheduled implosion when 387 charges from 72 lbs. of explosives sent the bridge – in bits and pieces – into the water below.

Construction on the Donora-Webster Bridge began in 1906 from plans developed by joint boards of Washington and Westmoreland Counties and it officially opened in 1908 for railroad use. In 1938, the bridge was converted for automobile and pedestrian use only.

Though the bridge was closed in 2009 to both pedestrians and motor vehicles alike due to structural deficiency, the structure remained intact, serving as an iconic addition to the Mon Valley skyline, if nothing else. The bridge, a truss bridge, was on the US National Register of Historic Places and was also a Washington County History & Landmarks Foundation landmark, unique for its v-lacing and latticework and the pin connections that held the steel beams together.

PennDOT slated the bridge for demolition in 2012 and has no plans to replace the structure at this time.

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