French King Bridge

French King Bridge aka: FKB
Coordinates	42°35′52″N 72°29′48″W / 42.59778°N 72.49667°W / 42.59778; -72.49667
Carries	Route 2 pedestrian and vehicular traffic
Crosses	Connecticut River
Locale	Gill, Massachusetts, and Erving, Massachusetts
Maintained by
ID number	E-10-014 or G-04-009
Characteristics
Design	Spandrel-braced steel deck arch bridge
Total length	782 feet (238 m)
Width	47.8 feet (14.6 m)
Height	140 feet (43 m)
Longest span	460 feet (140 m)
History
Construction start	September 1931
Construction end	1932
Opened	September 10, 1932; 94 years ago (1932-09-10)
Location
Interactive map of French King Bridge aka: FKB

The French King Bridge is the three-span "cantilever arch" bridge that crosses the Connecticut River on the border between the towns of Erving and Gill, Massachusetts, United States. The bridge, part of Massachusetts Route 2, carries automobile, bicycle, and pedestrian traffic and is owned and managed by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT).

History

The French King Bridge (FKB) was opened to traffic on September 10, 1932. It was named the "Most Beautiful Steel Bridge" of 1932 by the American Institute of Steel Construction. The bridge was rebuilt in 1992, and refurbished in 2008–2010.

Suicides

In 2009, police had said that between 26 and 31 people were known to have jumped off the bridge since its construction in 1932, with only 2 survivors.

In 2023, a nine-foot high steel barrier was erected on both sides of the bridge by the MassDOT. The barriers have all but stopped the need for emergency responders to be called to the bridge for the rescue of people in crisis, or for the recovery of people who have jumped.

Name

The name comes from a nearby geographical feature named French King Rock, visible in the middle of the river.

Image gallery

• 
  A view north from the top of the bridge during summer (August 2007)
• 
  A view from the bridge to Connecticut River at Autumn
• 
  A view of the road surface and guard rails
• 
  The southwest lamp post
• 
  The honorary plaque on the North West side of the bridge

See also

• List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Massachusetts
• List of crossings of the Connecticut River

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to French King Bridge.

• Massachusetts Highway Department: French King Bridge Archived from the original on 2015-09-30. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
• French King Bridge at Structurae
• Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. MA-100, "French King Bridge, Spanning Connecticut River on State Highway 2, Erving, Franklin County, MA", 12 photos, 37 data pages, 1 photo caption page

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