New bridge openings just don't attract audiences as they used to.
I'm sure the residents and businesses in the Pony Farm Road area of Oneonta are happy to have the recently opened bridge from state Route 7 back in service. Other than perhaps some observant crows flying by or a woodchuck or two in the vicinity, that bridge opening was quiet.
Back in 1936, however, a new bridge opening in Sidney turned into a festive occasion for the village. This was back in a time when Bridge Street actually had a bridge, an iron structure built in the late 19th century, spanning the Susquehanna River.
Traffic had increased and heavy trucks and buses had necessitated a better bridge, so the iron structure's days became numbered by late 1936. There had been a long history of bridges on Bridge Street. The first toll bridge on the site was washed away by a flood in 1852, replaced by a covered bridge that lasted until 1894 and also required a toll. The iron bridge was next, and was toll free.
Throughout 1936, Sidney residents had followed construction progress on the new, stronger bridge a few hundred feet down the river from Bridge Street. They'd also seen a lot of re-shuffling of properties to make way for the continuation of Main Street to approach the new bridge. The three story Music Hall block was demolished, land was acquired from the Congregational Church, several Pioneer Cemetery graves had to be relocated, and what was then a narrow Clark Street was widened and became the extension of Main Street.
The day finally arrived for the new bridge to be opened to traffic. It was Saturday, Dec. 5, 1936. The festive day began with a luncheon at 12:30 at the Hotel DeCumber on Main Street with invited guests, hosted by the Sidney Chamber of Commerce. Speaker of the New York State Assembly Irving M. Ives of Norwich was the guest speaker.
At 2 p.m., a parade formed in the area of the hotel and Cartwright Avenue. The Sidney band, members of state police Troop C, Sidney Fire Department and Boy Scouts formed the line of march, which proceeded down Main Street to the new bridge.
The bridge was trimmed with Christmas greens and lights. The entire Main Street was already decorated for the holidays, and all stores closed between 2 to 3 p.m. so people could attend the ceremony.
A temporary platform was set up at the center of the new $220,000 structure. There were a number of speeches made, including one by Frank W. Donovan, state district highway engineer of Binghamton. Nearly 1,000 residents witnessed Donovan cutting the ribbon to open traffic.
According to The Oneonta Star, "Glenn Whitaker, Jr. was the operator of the first car to cross the bridge. With him were Mr. Donovan, Supervisor Wayne Tyson of Unadilla, William Howland, superintendent of highways, and William Storie, chairman of the Highway committee of the Delaware county board of Supervisors."
Considering that the Whitaker family had a car dealership on Main Street from 1920 to 2007, the ceremonial first vehicle probably came out of the Whitaker & Son showroom.
The Sidney Enterprise reported on Dec. 10 that crews with acetylene torches had been busy cutting apart the Bridge Street bridge and getting it ready for removal as junk.
Driving along state Route 7 in Riverside today, some stone bridge abutments for the old iron bridge are still visible, having survived the floods of 2006 and 2011.
On Monday: An interesting business adventure for Fred Bresee in 1956.
City Historian Mark Simonson's column appears twice weekly. On Saturdays, his column focuses on the area during the Depression and before. His Monday columns address local history after the Depression. If you have feedback or ideas about the column, write to him at The Daily Star, or e-mail him at simmark@stny.rr.com. His website is www.oneontahistorian.com. His columns can be found at www.thedailystar.com/marksimonson.
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