08/18/2026
The original Mott Street Bridge, which opened in 1881, connected Milford Borough to what was then the primary route to Stroudsburg, PA. Constructed by Mr. C.S. and S. Palmer of Stroudsburg, this bridge was reported in the Port Jervis Evening Gazette on December 27 of that year.
However, by April 7, 1887, the Gazette described the bridge as being in "poor condition." For years, debates over whether to repair or replace the bridge—and who was responsible for it—played out in local politics and newspapers. Temporary repairs were made, but heavy usage and storms led to further deterioration.
Finally, the Pike County Commissioners decided to replace the bridge with a truss-style metal bridge, which opened in 1903 and was recently restored and reopened on January 2, 2020.
The 1903 Mott Street Bridge, a Pratt Truss Bridge named after its designers Willis Pratt and his father Caleb Pratt, was built by the Penn Bridge Company of Beaver Falls, PA. According to a January 11, 1904 article in the Evening Gazette, Pike County auditors estimated the bridge cost “not far from $6,000.”
Penn Bridge Company designed and built hundreds of truss bridges across the country during that era, but only a few remain today, as noted in an article in The Beaver County Times on August 15, 2017.
Special thanks to Pike County Commissioners for this historical information. 🌉📜
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