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TRIBUTE TO THE HARRIMAN FAMILY

"Seventy five years ago this week, in this same building, dignitaries gathered following formal ceremonies opening the Bear Mountain Bridge. On the bridge that 26^th day of November 1924, subsequent to the ribbon cutting, Mr. E. Roland Harriman, President of the Bear Mountain Hudson River Bridge Company, introduced his mother, Mary Harriman. Mrs. Harriman unveiled a bronze tablet noting the opening of the first highway bridge to span the Hudson River south of Albany. It was to be dedicated to all who with thought, labor and loyalty contributed to the construction.

In 1910 Mrs. Harriman’s husband, E.W. Harriman, along with other businessmen, donated to New York State the land and the finances for the purchase of the are known as the Bear Mountain- Harriman State Park. The millions of annual visitors to the park, many from the New York City area, eventually created the need for the Bear Mountain Bridge. The ferryboats from the east side of the Hudson River could no longer accommodate the multitudes and their automobiles.

When completed, the Bear Mountain Bridge was not only the longest suspension bridge in the world, but more importantly, it was a pioneering effort which heralded a golden age of long span bridge building along the Hudson River and throughout the New York metropolitan area. The success of the new methods used in bridge cable construction at Bear Mountain would make possible the suspension of such mighty bridges as the George Washington and the Golden Gate.

On September 25, 1940 the Bridge Authority purchased the Bear Mountain Bridge from the private concern for $2,275,000 and lowered the basic passenger car rate from $.80 to $.50 each way. The Bridge Authority further reduced that fare to $.35 on January 1, 1942 and then to $.25 on July 15, 1945. As the World War ended, annual traffic at Bear Mountain in 1945 totaled just under 483,000 vehicles. Today, with a replacement value of $90.8 million the Bear Mountain Bridge crosses six million vehicles annually. During the term of the Bridge Authority’s fifty-nine year stewardship, over 166 million vehicles have traveled over this span.

In 1923, the first section of the Appalachian Trail was created in Bear Mountain Park. The Bear Mountain Bridge was later included as an official portion of the trail, linking the two shores of the Hudson River. Hikers, upon crossing the bridge, are provided with an awe-inspiring view of the river, the Hudson Highlands and the mountain that served as the genesis for the bridge name.

While we at the Bridge Authority are proud of our role in the history of this historic structure, we humbly recognize the Harriman family as the most significant factor in the history of this bridge. It was their wisdom, vision and genuine concern for the residents of the Hudson River Valley that made the bridge a reality. We will forever be indebted to them."

New York State Bridge Authority

December 2, 1999