Pennsylvania Built the Tallest Railroad Bridge on Earth in 1882. In 2003 a Tornado Took It Down

ELEVEN OF TWENTY TOWERS FELL IN MINUTES, AND PENNSYLVANIA LEFT THEM WHERE THEY LAY In McKean County, Pennsylvania, a walkway runs out over the Kinzua Creek valley and simply stops in the air. It stands on six steel towers of a railroad bridge that was 2,053 feet long and 301 feet high, and when it opened in 1882 it was the tallest railroad bridge in the world. On July 21, 2003, a tornado took down eleven of its twenty towers, and the wreckage still lies in the woods below. This documentary explains why the Erie Railroad built the Kinzua Viaduct in ninety-four working days, why it was rebuilt in steel in 1900 on the same old foundations, how a bridge nobody needed for freight became a state park, and how rusted anchor bolts left it vulnerable to an F1 tornado. It also covers why Pennsylvania chose not to rebuild and instead opened the Kinzua Sky Walk with its glass-floor observation deck. Told through real footage and the historical record. IN THIS VIDEO Why the Erie needed to cross the Kinzua valley instead of going around Octave Chanute's design and the 94-day build of 1882 Why the iron bridge was replaced with steel in 1900 How the viaduct became Kinzua Bridge State Park and a tourist excursion route The rusted anchor bolts and the July 21, 2003 tornado Why Pennsylvania left the fallen towers in place The Kinzua Sky Walk and glass-floor deck today CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 0:59 The Valley Problem 2:08 Designing the Bridge 2:40 Ninety-Four Days 4:33 Eighth Wonder of the World 6:03 Rebuilding in Steel 7:36 From Railroad to Park 10:24 The Tornado Strikes Have you ridden the Knox and Kane across the Kinzua or walked the Sky Walk? Tell us what you remember in the comments. Subscribe for more forgotten stories of American railroads. #KinzuaViaduct #KinzuaBridge #Pennsylvania #KinzuaSkyWalk #ErieRailroad #RailroadHistory #Railroad #BridgeCollapse #AmericanHistory #RailStoriesUSA