Envisioning Somerset was a wonderful opportunity and experience for the advanced digital photography students of Somerset-Berkley Regional High School. We were able to learn the history of our towns, while also capturing the beauty in them. Something beautiful that stood out to me was the Brightman Street Bridge in Somerset, MA. I decided to photograph it as a symbol of the history of the town.
The Brightman Street Bridge was a 922- foot long, four-lane wide bridge. It is spanning the Taunton River between the town of Somerset and the city of Fall River, MA. The building of the bridge took place between 1906 and 1908. Then, It was opened full time to the public on October 10, 1908. On October 11, 2011, It was closed to all traffic. The bridge was also known as Slade’s Ferry Bridge.
This area has always been an important place for people to get from one place to another. When the native people were crossing the river, Corbitant was Sachem of the Pocasset tribe who lived in this area. He ran a dugout canoe Ferry Service in the area. After all of the native people were gone and the colonists came, the Slade family ran a ferry service in the same spot (Slade’s Ferry). On the Fall River side, the Brightman family also opened up and started running the Ferry service, and eventually, due to the history of the ferry services, the bridge was named after the two families.
The Brightman Street Bridge was a 922- foot long, four-lane wide bridge. It is spanning the Taunton River between the town of Somerset and the city of Fall River, MA. The building of the bridge took place between 1906 and 1908. Then, It was opened full time to the public on October 10, 1908. On October 11, 2011, It was closed to all traffic. The bridge was also known as Slade’s Ferry Bridge.
This area has always been an important place for people to get from one place to another. When the native people were crossing the river, Corbitant was Sachem of the Pocasset tribe who lived in this area. He ran a dugout canoe Ferry Service in the area. After all of the native people were gone and the colonists came, the Slade family ran a ferry service in the same spot (Slade’s Ferry). On the Fall River side, the Brightman family also opened up and started running the Ferry service, and eventually, due to the history of the ferry services, the bridge was named after the two families.