Schedule of Events

Hotel

Fairfield Inn & Suites Pittsburgh Neville Island

Friday, August 20, 2010

• 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. -- Dinner and presentations at Rock Bottom Restaurant

Saturday, August 21, 2010

• Self-guided tour of historic bridges in Mercer and Crawford Counties, in northwestern Pennsylvania.
• 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. -- Site visit to the Quaker Bridge.
• 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. -- Dinner and presentations at the Hilltop Tavern (Greenville, PA)

Sunday, August 22, 2010

• Self-guided tour of historic bridges in the Pittsburgh area.
  

Friday

Dinner at Rock Bottom Restaurant: 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

• Cost: $35
• Please RSVP to Mary Lu Denny of Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation at marylu@phlf.org , 412-471-5808 ext 527. Payment is due in advance. You may pay by cash, check, or credit card.
• Proceeds from the dinner benefit Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.

• A map and information about the restaurant is available at www.rockbottom.com/pittsburgh.

Dinner

• Salad
• Bread
• Entree, choice of:
  • Grilled sirloin steak
  • Grilled salmon
  • Vegetable pasta primavera
• Dessert, choice of:
  • Carrot cake
  • Chocolate stout cheesecake

Presentations

• Monitoring Bridges with Sensors -- John Graham, P.E.
  Using sensors to monitor bridges allows engineers to understand what is going on with a bridge, providing more accurate data than with visual inspections. Sensors give real data, letting engineers know if a deficiency is actually causing a problem. They can also alert the owner as a problem is beginning to occur, so it can be repaired before it leads to other problems.
  • Mr. Graham is a distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Principal, Mid-Atlantic Region, Osmos, USA, former head engineer of Allegheny County and of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
    
• Historic Bridge Solutions Through Compromise -- Nathan Holth
  Discussion and case studies regarding methods for arriving at a successful historic bridge preservation project. The audience will be encouraged to participate and offer comments and questions throughout the presentation.
  • Mr. Holth is the creator, author, and photographer of HistoricBridges.org.
    
• Troubleshooting a Historic Structure Rehabilitation Project -- Luke Gordon
  A focused discussion on the project scoping, design, materials, and construction practices that lead a contractor and owner to a successful project. At certain points during the presentation the audience will be able to ask questions on the topics discussed.
  • Mr. Gordon is a project manager at Ajax Paving Industries.
    

Saturday

Self-guided Bridge Tour

Self-guided driving tour of historic bridges in Mercer and Crawford counties, Pennsylvania.

• Directions are available here.
• Click on the Bridge Map or Bridge List to view information on the bridges.
• See HistoricBridges.org for additional photos.
  

Visit to the Quaker Bridge: 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Visit to the in-process development Historic Quaker Bridge Park in Greenville, PA. Founder of the park, Nathan Clark, will be on hand to discuss the development and answer any questions about the bridge and the park.

• The Quaker Bridge is located on Williamson Road 2000 feet east of Conneaut Lake Road (SR-18). See our detail page for the bridge for maps and additional information.
• Directions to the bridge park can be found here.
  

Dinner at Hilltop Tavern: 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

• Hilltop Tavern Restaurant and Bar is located at 25 Conneaut Lake Rd Greenville, PA 16125.
• Less than a four-minute drive from The Historic Quaker Bridge, and involves just one, easy left turn off westbound Williamson Road (which used to cross Historic Quaker Bridge) onto southbound PA Route 18 / Conneaut Lake Road. If there were no trees in between them, you likely could have at one time looked 2/3 mile right up the Little Shenango River Valley from the Hilltop and clearly have seen the truss! The Hilltop is adjacent to the northeast corner of the campus of Thiel College.
• Directions from the bridge park to the restaurant can be found on page 2 of this document.

Dinner

• A full menu will be available to all attendees.

Presentations

• Experiences in Creating Pennsylvania's First Historic Bridge Park -- Nathan Clark
  Nathan Clark, will discuss his group's experiences in taking ownership of a historic bridge once slated for demolition, and developing a park around it.
  • Mr. Clark is Founder and President of The Historic Quaker Bridge Foundation.
    
• Comparing and Contrasting European and American Perceptions of Historic Preservation -- Jason Smith
  This presentation focuses on the attitudes of Europeans and Americans towards places of historic interest, using historic bridges as a case study and providing data through empirical research that was conducted by the author. A discussion forum will follow the presentation.
  • Mr. Smith is a historian, bridge photographer, and lecturer of English at the University of Applied Sciences in Erfurt, Germany.