Bridge over the Salmon Falls River

The railroad first came to the town where I live, Rollinsford, NH, in 1841 when it was the last stop in New Hampshire on the Boston & Maine Railroad. By 1849, the first wooden bridge over the churning Salmon Falls River into Maine was built only a few hundred yeards from my house. In 1860, that bridge suddenly collapsed but luckily no one was killed! The steel bridge seen in this photo was built during the late 19th century and is still used today by the Downeaster train which goes from Portland to Boston, and gigantic freight trains. Sadly, none of the trains stop here anymore, they just fly by! This postcard is dated in ink on the front "September 27, 1906", but this view from the pedestrian bridge nearby has changed very little over the decades. Sometimes I wonder when they are going to have to build a new bridge, it will be quite an engineering project!