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}} Canton Viaduct is a blind arcade cavity wall railroad viaduct built in 1834-35 in Canton, Massachusetts, for the Boston and Providence Railroad (B&P).〔 〕 At its completion, it was the longest (615 feet) and tallest (70 feet) railroad viaduct in the world; today, it is the last surviving viaduct of its kind. It has been in continuous service for years; it now carries high-speed passenger and freight rail service. The Canton Viaduct's walls are similar to the (ancient curtain wall of Rhodes ) (built about 400 BCE) with rusticated stone. It supports a train deck about 〔(American Society of Civil Engineers article - Rebuilding History )〕 above the Canton River, the east branch (tributary) of the Neponset River. The stream pool passes through six semi-circular portals in the viaduct, flowing to a waterfall about 50 feet downstream. The viaduct was the final link built for the B&P's then 41-mile mainline between Boston, Massachusetts; and Providence, Rhode Island.〔Not the current distance, due to later route changes.〕 Today, the viaduct serves Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. It sits 0.3 miles (0.5 km) south of Canton Junction, at milepost 213.74,〔Milepost at northern end of the viaduct〕 reckoned from Pennsylvania Station in New York City, and at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) milepost 15.35, reckoned from South Station in Boston. ==Inception== The Canton Viaduct was erected in 1835 by the B&P, one of the first New England railroads, shortly after its 1831 founding. Thomas B. Wales, one of the original families of Boston, and owner of the T.B. Wales & Co. Shipping Company, was the first president of the B&P, The Taunton Branch Railroad, as well as the Western Railroad Corporation. Due to his friendship with prominent New England families, including the Revere family, they were able to bring the Canton Viaduct to fruition. The T.B. Wales & Co. clipper ships brought raw materials for manufacturing companies from its dock (Wales Wharf) and Counting House (Long Wharf) to various areas in New England. Without the influence of individuals such as Thomas B. Wales, Joseph Warren Revere, owner of the Revere Copper Company and major stockholders (most of whom were Board members), the Canton Viaduct would not have been built. There were better routes through other towns for the location of the railroad line from Boston to Providence. However, building the railroad through Canton placed the line close to Paul Revere's Copper Rolling Mill, where a half mile spur (using strap rails and horse power) connected the mill to Canton Junction and undoubtedly gave a boost to Revere's copper business. The other influencing factor that caused the Canton Viaduct to be built was a fatal accident in 1832 on the Granite Railroad, which used inclined planes to cross a valley.〔Plan of the Granite Railroad inclined planes〕 The original plans called for the use of inclined planes to cross the Canton River Valley ((Canton Dale )), but they were changed after the inclined plane accident, and a viaduct was built instead. This unique viaduct was designed by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Officer and West Point graduate - Captain (William Gibbs McNeill ). He was assisted by engineers, Major George Washington Whistler (McNeill's brother-in-law), Major General Isaac Ridgeway Trimble and General (William Raymond Lee ). The viaduct was built by the Dodd & Baldwin company from Pennsylvania. Around this time, Russia was interested in building railroads. Tsar Nicholas I sent workmen to draw extensive diagrams of the Canton Viaduct. He later summoned Whistler to Russia as a consulting engineer to design the Moscow–Saint Petersburg Railway, on which two viaducts were modeled after the Canton Viaduct. A scale model viaduct of similar design is on display at the Oktyabrsky Railroad Museum in St. Petersburg. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Canton Viaduct」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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