Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge Images
Linking two distinct communities …
A total of five bridges have connected the boroughs of Sea Bright and Rumson over the past 150 years. A sixth river crossing is now being constructed at a nine-figure cost.
The Jumping Point Draw Bridge — the very first Shrewbury River span — opened in 1872. The 340-foot-long, wooden drawbridge linked Ocean Avenue with Rumson Road. That structure was replaced in 1881 by a $36,700 iron bridge designed by Wilson Brothers & Company of Philadelphia and built by the Delaware Bridge Company. It stood until 1900 and required a toll to pass — a penny for a walker, a nickle for a one-horse coach and a dime for a two-horse coach. William Rodney, Sr. was the first bridge tender.
A third temporary wooden bridge lasted just one year. In June 1901, a new 660-foot-long steel, steam-powered swing-bridge opened with a celebratory parade and speeches. Wynkoop & Braly Company was the designer and American Bridge Company of NY was the builder. The cost was $65,000.
Who should the new bridge be named for? Suggestions — HERE
In September 1949, the borough paid $7,500 to acquire old railroad land to be used as access for a new Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge. The existing double-leaf bascule bridge opened in March 1950. It cost $1.5 million; Morris Goodkind was designer and Ole Hansen & Sons, Inc. was builder. According to a 1950 dedication plaque, the bridge is officially the “Shrewsbury River Bridge.” In the late 1940s, Ocean Avenue was re-designated as a state highway, NJ Route 36.
In November 2021, ground was broken for a new county drawbridge; the completion date is Spring 2025. Total project costs will reach $135 million — nearly all paid for by the federal government. Hardesty & Hanover of New York did the design work and Richard E. Pierson Construction Company of Pilesgrove, NJ is the builder.
The new drawbridge will continue to open for marine traffic. Depending on the tides, clearance for boats under the current bridge is between 15 and 20 feet. That isn’t expect to change much.
• Highlands-Sea Bright Bridge Images — HERE
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Above All — Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, March 2024 (StansPhotos.com).
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Big Picture — Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, February 2024 (StansPhotos.com).
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Light Traffic — Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, 1916. Seen from the corner of Ocean Avenue and Rumson Road looking west at the bridge.
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Open Up — Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, Summer 2021 (Alyssa Isoldi Scheffer Photo). The Seabright Beach Club is in the background. The borough’s longest operating private beach club marks 130 summer seasons this year.
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Coming Soon — Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge design proposal, 2020. The new county bridge will be wider; more welcoming to walkers and bikers. It will continue to open for passing boats — MORE INFO.
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Packer’s Real Estate Exchange office, 1905. The Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge is visible in the foreground and the Sea Bright Railroad Station is in the background. P. Hall Packer was the first mayor of Sea Bright.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, February 2023 (StansPhotos).
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge with toll booth, 1890s. The bridge first opened in 1881 and was replaced in 1901.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, 2022 (R-FH Retro Photo).
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, December 2022 (StansPhotos).
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge with steamship passing through, 1910s. Back then the bridge tender was paid $60 per month.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge aerial image, August 2022 (StansPhotos). The new river crossing is well underway to the south.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge nearing completion, 1949. The $1.4 million span was designed by Morris Goodkind, a notable civil engineer, and built by Ole Hansen & Sons. The borough spent $45,500 to acquire land around the bridge necessary for construction.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge (l) under construction, 1950 (Dorn’s Photo). The old 1901 span is to the south.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge amidst the two cranes that will built the new $130 million bridge, July 2022.
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“Reflection of an Old Friend, Sea Bright Bridge 2021” by Mary Connell Gaynor.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, early 1900s (Brown Brothers Photo). The image is taken from Packer’s Railroad Park which was located where the former Dunkin’ Donuts is today. This “swing-bridge” opened in June 1901 and lasted 50 years.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge painting by Mary Connell Gaynor.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge and beach clubs, 2021 (AfterRain Photo).
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Trouble-Maker — Just over the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge at 1 Rumson Road was the home of James Allgor, who put up a “Spite Fence” so travelers could see his “socialist rants,” 1910. He was placed in a mental institution in 1915.
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Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, 2019. Painting by Joe Bergholm.
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Sketch proposal for new Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, 1900. The builder was the American Bridge Company.
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“Spite Fence” on the Rumson side of the bridge, 1910. The property was owned by James M. Allgor, who ended up in the state insane asylum in Trenton. He died in 1934.