NY got it wrong — the oldest bridge in America is in Philadelphia, damn it

An open letter to people who live in New York:

Dear New York,

Stop stealing things.

XOXO,
-Everyone in New Jersey and Philadelphia

While there is certainly a rivalry between New York and New Jersey, and New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and maybe there's one between Pennsylvania and New York (what would that be over, who has the worst drivers?) about who is better at just about anything (we all know it's New Jersey, I mean, it's not even close), I am going to stand up and defend Pennsylvania here, specifically, Philadelphia.

And more specifically, bridges in Philly.

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You see, the City of Brotherly Love is home to the oldest bridge in America, regardless of the fact that New York is, apparently, trying to steal the valor of a unique landmark that predates the founding of our great nation.

This all started the other day when our sister radio station in Albany wrote an article claiming the "oldest bridge in America," built in 1825, is in upstate New York.

Immediately, my finely tuned bullshit detector started blinking and buzzing.

Here's the truth:

William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania himself, wanted to connect his mansion to Philadelphia (wouldn't it be great if you could wield that kind of power?) but there was a small creek between them. The solution: build a bridge!

That bridge was, in fact, built in 1697 — and it also served a bigger purpose by connecting Philly to other cities like Trenton and New York, so it wasn't just for Penn's gratification (or driveway).

324 years later, long after George Washington himself crossed it, that bridge not only still stands today on what is now U.S. Route 13 in the Holmesburg section of the city, but thousands of people drive over it every day.

There's even a bridge that announces that you are about to drive over the oldest bridge in the nation.

With that said, I was a bit annoyed when I read this about that bridge in New York:

Built in 1825, the Hyde Hall Covered Bridge is not only the oldest bridge in New York State, it is also the oldest bridge in the United States. You can find it at 1527 County Highway 31 in Cooperstown, NY.

Yeah, uh... no. That would be the oldest covered bridge in America.

And what a fine structure it is... the term "termites holding hands" seems to apply here (if you've ever seen the movie "Funny Farm" starring Chevy Chase, you know the scene where the covered wooden bridge collapses when a delivery truck tries crossing it).

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Of course, it should come as no surprise that New York is attempting to swipe yet another notable piece of American history. Those of us here in New Jersey all know that the State of Liberty is clearly within the lines of the great Garden State, yet New York claims it (yes, I know there was a big court case about it).

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Getting back to bridges... while New York does have the oldest covered bridge in the nation, the first covered bridge in America was in — you guessed it — Philadelphia. That was the Market Street Bridge over the Schuylkill River, which opened on New Year's Day in 1805.

Take that, New York! 😀