Hope Memorial Bridge | |
|---|---|
 The Lorain–Carnegie Bridge circa 1970s | |
| Coordinates | 41°29′22″N81°41′37″W / 41.489407°N 81.693554°W /41.489407; -81.693554 (Hope Memorial bridge) |
| Carries |  SR 10 |
| Crosses | Cuyahoga River |
| Locale | Cleveland,Ohio |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Art decotruss bridge |
| Total length | 4,490.0 feet (1,368.55 m)[1] |
| Longest span | 229.0 feet (69.80 m)[1] |
| Clearance below | 93 feet (28.3 m) |
| History | |
| Construction end | 1932 |
Lorain-Carnegie Bridge | |
    | |
| Location | Spans Cuyahoga River between Lorain and Carnegie Aves.,Cleveland, Ohio |
| Coordinates | 41°29′22″N81°41′37″W / 41.489407°N 81.693554°W /41.489407; -81.693554 |
| Area | 8.5 acres (3.4 ha) |
| Built | 1927 (1927) |
| Architectural style | Art Deco, cantilever deck truss bridge |
| NRHP reference No. | 76001398[2] |
| Added to NRHP | October 8, 1976 |
| Location | |
 Interactive map of Hope Memorial Bridge | |
TheHope Memorial Bridge (also known as theLorain–Carnegie Bridge) is a 4,490-foot-long (1,370 m)art decotruss bridge crossing theCuyahoga River inCleveland, Ohio. The bridge connects Lorain Avenue on Cleveland's west side and Carnegie Avenue on the east side, terminating just short ofProgressive Field.
Four pairs of statues designed by sculptorHenry Hering and architectFrank Walker, officially named theGuardians of Traffic,[3] are sculpted onto opposite-facing ends of two pairs of pylons, a pair at each end of theviaduct. They symbolize progress in transportation.[4] Each Guardian holds a different vehicle in its hands: a hay wagon, a covered wagon, a stagecoach, and a1930s-era automobile, as well as four types of motorized trucks used for construction.[5] The statues are composed ofBerea Sandstone and were carved in Cleveland'sLittle Italy neighborhood.[6][7]
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A bond issue to pay for the bridge was passed in 1921, but construction was delayed for years due to squabbles over how the money would be spent. The bridge was completed in 1932 at a cost of $4.75 million ($109,470,000 with inflation[8]). It stands 93 feet (28 meters) above the river's waterline in order to allow shipping to pass unobstructed. A second, lower deck designed to carry truck and commercial traffic was never put into service.
The bridge had originally been planned to go through the location of theErie Street Cemetery on East 9th Street.[9]
The bridge was listed in theNational Register of Historic Places on October 8, 1976, after a controversy in whichCuyahoga County engineerAlbert S. Porter threatened to remove the historic pylons to widen the span, stating, "Those columns are monstrosities and should be torn down and forgotten. There is nothing particularly historic about any one of them. We're not running aMay Show here."[10]
The bridge was renovated in the early 1980s.[11]
On September 1, 1983, the Lorain–Carnegie bridge was officially renamed the "Hope Memorial Bridge". Press reports vary regarding whom the name honors: William Henry "Harry" Hope, a localstonemason who helped build theGuardians of Traffic sculptures, and the father of comedian and former Cleveland residentBob Hope;[12][13] Bob Hope himself;[14] the entire Hope family;[15][16][17] or Harry Hope along with the other workers who helped erect theGuardians of Traffic.[18]
On December 10, 2012, officials opened a 14.5-foot-wide (4.4 m) multi-use path on the north side of the bridge, part of a project which also added lighting to theGuardians of Traffic.[19]
The inaugural Guardian Mile road race was run across the bridge on August 11, 2018. The elite field boasts multiple Olympians and $14,000 up for grabs in prize money, as well as races for runners of all ages and levels.[20]
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On November 19, 2021, the Cleveland Indians ofMajor League Baseball changed their name to theCleveland Guardians; the choice was inspired by theGuardians of Traffic, which neighbor Progressive Field, the team's home ballpark.[21]
While the structures are also often reffered [sic] to as Guardians of Transportation, officially they are the Guardians of Traffic, [Case Western Reserve University professor John] Grawbowski said.
The ceremony drew a large contingent of the family of Bob Hope's father, Harry, one of the stonecutters who created the four gigantic pylons, and the man for whom the bridge is now named.
The city of Cleveland claims [Bob Hope] as one of their favorite sons and has named a major bridge after him...
Memorials to [Bob Hope] are proliferated across the American landscape...cross the Cuyahoga River across the Hope Memorial Bridge in Cleveland...
...renamed the Hope Memorial Bridge in honor of the family of comedian and actor Bob Hope, who were Cleveland stonemasons.
The bridge was renamed at this time, becoming the Hope Memorial Bridge, in honor of actor Bob Hope and his family...
Cuyahoga County Engineer Thomas J. Neff is making the change with the permission of county commissioners, he announced, to honor comedian Bob Hope's father, Harry, who worked as a stonecutter on the bridge's pylons in the early 1930s, and the others in the Hope family who live in Cleveland or used to.
The bridge is being renamed to honor his father, Harry, who worked on the bridge originally, and the entire Hope family.
He did not return in September 1983 for ceremonies re-dedicating the renovated Lorain–Carnegie Bridge as the Hope Memorial Bridge, in honor of Hope's father and other stonemasons who carved its massive stone pylons and eight 'Guardians of Traffic' figures.
Crossings of theCuyahoga River | ||||
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