Mystic River Bascule Bridge

It carries vehicle and foot traffic directly into the tourist district of town via 33 ft-wide (10 m) Main Street (U.S. Route 1).

The counterweighted four bar linkage type bascule bridge was designed by former Otis Elevator Company Chief Engineer Thomas Ellis Brown of New York and built in 1922 by the J. E. FitzGerald Construction Company of New London, Connecticut, according to its historical marker.

Until 1928, the bridge carried streetcars of the Groton and Stonington Street Railway.

It is operated by the Connecticut Department of Transportation and opens for approximately five minutes around 2,200 times per year, carrying an average daily traffic of 11,800.

It is driven by two 1,400 pounds (640 kg) 40 horsepower (30 kW) direct current motors, and its span is greased and inspected every one hundred openings or two weeks during the winter.

Located at the center part of the bridge.
Looking at the bridge from the east side of the street.
Good view of the counter weights.
The plaque that describes when and by whom the bridge was built.