Pontoon Bridges, Miracles Of Engineering!!

[JPK Huson 1863]

Some of these may be familiar to members here- some I've seen in other photos but not these shots. One of the pontoon over the James, where ships were used to counter the current, I'd come across ages ago but not in use. The one I found in our Archives has an entire wagon train making use of it, amazing.

LOVE pontoon bridges, don't ask me why, have since the first time one caught my interest. Perhaps it's the engineering part- can NOT imagine how difficult it would be to make one! Think about it- what amounts to boards over boats, perfectly lined up and constructed so that WAGONS pulled by mules, horses, the odd ox could get over the thing. Photos of wagon trains, artillery- over these boats with wood- roads over WATER, for Heaven's sake- crazy! Then, should one be in a river where current is an issue? Find entire SHIPS to apply tension, keep the whole snake in line. Crazier!

Yet we see them, large and small all through those years. some constructed under fire ( Fredericksburg ) some under massive pressure, a whole army's safety dependent on one, some the single connection after civilian bridges were destroyed in acts of war. Hopefully the only photos here are ones not posted yet but if so, please excuse. They could use a second look anyway.

Putting a section into place, Aiken's Landing

I have the sister photo, where these ships are terribly ghostly, someone told me their purpose was to maintain tension on the bridge in the James. That one lacked the agon train, the bridge in use.

This was merely titled
Pontoon Landing, James

Landing supplies on James, LOVE this one

Pontoon landing, think it's also the James?

Untitled because I'd be guessing......... looks permanent, maybe part of the Potomac somewhere?

 

[zeke]

nice photos, thanks for sharing.......

 

[Seduzal]

Engineers at work. Great photos of bridges with the uses of boats, wood and ways to get across the rivers. Thanks for sharing

 

[JPK Huson 1863]

Got stuck on them a long time ago- must have been amazing to see, much less use. Not the most interesting aspect of the war, I guess- one of those side things you keep coming back to. The engineers must have been amazing- moving entire armies across pretty much anything. Bridges, corduroy roads- all of it, too cool.

 

[reading48]

Good Photo's Annie
Temporary Boat docks and Bridges....

 

[FrankN]

Interesting group of photos. Thanks!

Frank

 

[Patrick H]

These are really interesting photos! I agree that the engineering feat is remarkable. Just imagine the logistical effort, too.
In some cases, the pontoons could have been towed up or down river to the bridge site, but what about situations where they needed to be hauled overland? I'm sure that happened at times.

 

[dlofting]

Great photos.....those boats are well engineered so the least possible force from the current is applied at the upstream end. There are only four major components to the bridge....the boats, the stringers/beams that span the gaps between boats, the boards for the roadbed and the railings, that presumably help hold the roadbed boards in place. I'm willing to bet that the boats fit perfectly in a standard wagon. Would have loved to see one of these as it was laid down.

 

[Ray Ball]

Got stuck on them a long time ago- must have been amazing to see, much less use. Not the most interesting aspect of the war, I guess- one of those side things you keep coming back to. The engineers must have been amazing- moving entire armies across pretty much anything. Bridges, corduroy roads- all of it, too cool.

Oh JPKHudson, I disagree (laughingly) I think that its very interesting. However you sure do make a good point about the Engineers. The Engineering was astounding, to say the least, and in some cases it bordered on the miraculous, but it doesn't make for very interesting stories or movies. As you said, they were amazing at making something out of nothing... and doing it fast. We reenact the US Engineers very proudly. Like they say- if you have a problem that you can't solve, give it to the engineers- they will. If its absolutely impossible, that takes 24 hours. Essayons!

 

[Ray Ball]

Great photos.....those boats are well engineered so the least possible force from the current is applied at the upstream end. There are only four major components to the bridge....the boats, the stringers/beams that span the gaps between boats, the boards for the roadbed and the railings, that presumably help hold the roadbed boards in place. I'm willing to bet that the boats fit perfectly in a standard wagon. Would have loved to see one of these as it was laid down.

The pontons on a French style bridge train actually become a part of the wagon and store/ carry the materials. The collapsible Russian style canvas pontoons folded so their specially designed wagons could carry maximum load.

There are some pics of the ones we took part in building in 2012 for the Fredericksburg reenactment on our website. They are build exactly according to the blueprints from the 1860s which we were able to acquire. Of course we floated them across the Rappahonnock to move a unit onto the far bank but you can get a good idea about the pontons. Here's the link:
http://www.usengineerbn.net/Fredericksburg 150.html
Enjoy

 

[Patrick H]

The pontons on a French style bridge train actually become a part of the wagon and store/ carry the materials. The collapsible Russian style canvas pontoons folded so their specially designed wagons could carry maximum load.

There are some pics of the ones we took part in building in 2012 for the Fredericksburg reenactment on our website. They are build exactly according to the blueprints from the 1860s which we were able to acquire. Of course we floated them across the Rappahonnock to move a unit onto the far bank but you can get a good idea about the pontons. Here's the link:
http://www.usengineerbn.net/Fredericksburg 150.html
Enjoy

Excellent photos!

 

[NedBaldwin]

There are pics at the LOC website showing the pontoons on wheels:

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/cwp2003001043/PP/

 

[JPK Huson 1863]

Oh JPKHudson, I disagree (laughingly) I think that its very interesting. However you sure do make a good point about the Engineers. The Engineering was astounding, to say the least, and in some cases it bordered on the miraculous, but it doesn't make for very interesting stories or movies. As you said, they were amazing at making something out of nothing... and doing it fast. We reenact the US Engineers very proudly. Like they say- if you have a problem that you can't solve, give it to the engineers- they will. If its absolutely impossible, that takes 24 hours. Essayons!

Well I DO think they were one of the most interesting, agreed, I could see where it's a tough sell getting the point across! Got stuck on the Red River Dam awhile ago, still can't get enough of that story and pontoon bridges? Forget it. Really- any bridge they glued together to get an entire army across anywhere. Lee retreating after Gettysburg? Would give a lot for a photo of that bridge- wish it could have been a movie in itself because talk about suspense, right? His engineers were responsible for an escape, not a retreat. I'm not sure the folks who lived in those houses felt about it, but turning planks of wood into a bridge capable of crossing an army across a swollen river against the clock like that is worthy of a movie. " If it is absolutely impossible, that takes 24 hours " Awesome!

 

[JPK Huson 1863]

I think this is one of the others I blew up to get a better look at the pontoon bridge, and forgot about. Just found it.

 

[1SGDan]

It is interesting to see the boats being used as temporary wharves. Downloading steamers in shallow water posed a difficult problem for the commanders. When discussing the issue with officers from the other branches one engineer officer stated
"officers of great intelligence entertained very crude ideas on the subject" and left the matter for him to work out. As we can see here they put the matter in good hands.
The marvel of the pontoons was created by hard work, good training, initiative, and imagination of the engineer troops and their officers.

"ESSAYONS"

 

[John Hartwell]

Here's the page from the Atlas of the Civil War that shows details of canvas pontoon construction, etc:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/baylordigitalcollections/5280796263/in/set-72157625522425277/

 

[bankerpapaw]

Great pictures. Thanks.

 

[Ray Ball]

Here's the page from the Atlas of the Civil War that shows details of canvas pontoon construction, etc:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/baylordigitalcollections/5280796263/in/set-72157625522425277/

Outstanding John Hartwell! I am going to forward that to a friend who is running our sister company- Co. B US Engineers (we are Co. A) in the Washington/Oregon area. For those out that way, he is building a three ponton Russian style bridge to spec. I believe he likely has this plate but it can't hurt.

 

[frankconrad]

The amount of knowledge that has been lost in the last 50 years on how to do things with out modern equipment is mind boggling. Find pre WW2 and earlier engineering books, and you will see ways of doing things with basic levers, pulleys, masts, gin poles, rollers , capstans and other means. hard work but they were able to do a lot it took time and knowledge..

 

[Ray Ball]

frankconrad, I just purchased a 1917 US Engineers manual on eBay. So much of it is the same as the manuals we have from the 1860s. People can't believe what the Engineers could do using simple machines when we show them at living history events.