The Chesterfield Arch Bridge Beautification and Preservation Society recently placed planters with flowers, a picnic bench, and a banner on the Justice Harlan Fiske Stone Pedestrian Bridge on Route 9 between West Chesterfield and Brattleboro.
In 2010, the state of New Hampshire named the bridge for the late Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, who was born in Chesterfield in 1872. He served as Chief Justice from July 3, 1941 until his death on April 22, 1946.
When the two-lane arch bridge was built in 1937 to replace a suspension bridge destroyed in the Flood of 1936, it won an award that year from the American Institute of Steel Construction as the “Most Beautiful Steel Bridge” in its class. The plaque commemorating the honor still stands.
The 1937 bridge was decommissioned in 2003 after the construction of the adjacent, similarly-designed U.S. Navy Seabees Bridge.
The Society, a nonprofit formed in 2009, seeks to maintain the 1937 bridge as a pedestrian and bicycle pathway, a potential tourist destination, and a venue for artistic and community events.
To learn how to help as a volunteer, or to make a donation to help preserve the bridge, visit www.chesterfieldarchbridge.org.