Bridges over Walker Avenue

In a previous post, we discussed the decision to close Walker Avenue, which at one time, ran east-west through the middle of campus. This necessitated the demolition of the College Avenue bridge that carried traffic safely over busy Walker Avenue. This post will explore some of the images of those bridges through time.

Some of the earliest extant images of the bridge crossing Walker Avenue only show it from far away.

1905 view of campus 

In this first image, the iron bridge can just be seen in the center of the image.

Detail of bridge from 1905 view of campus

This close up image of the bridge from the 1914 Carolinian yearbook cryptically labels it "The Bridge of Sighs." The image also shows some of the details of the bridge, such as its walkway guardrails outside of the center lane, which may have been reserved for vehicular traffic, as well as the iron superstructure.

1914 Carolinian yearbook

An alternative perspective of the iron bridge is shown in this 1925 postcard taken from the Walker Avenue vantage point.

1925 Postcard 

The iron bridge would stand until 1928 when it was replaced with a much more comely concrete bridge.1

1928 Photograph of the new concrete bridge

1940 photograph of concrete bridge taken from Walker Avenue perspective

When the campus and city of Greensboro agreed to close Walker Avenue, The land had to be filled in where Walker Avenue cut through campus. In the following photograph, students observe the process in front of a new manhole located at the new grade.

1949 Photograph of Walker Avenue and bridge during regrading process

In this final photograph, student Oriana McArthur and Dr. Walter Clinton Jackson look at the new library under construction from the bridge. The bridge would be demolished soon in 1950. As can be seen from the photograph, the former Walker Avenue has been partially filled in to form the foundation of the library.

1949 photograph of Library under construction from the bridge

1-Elisabeth Ann Bowles, A Good Beginning: The First Four Decades of The University of North Carolina at Greensboro p.92

The Road that Divided the Campus - Walker Avenue and its closing

From the earliest days of the school, Walker Avenue had bisected campus, forcing students to cross the busy street (often multiple times daily) to access buildings on both sides. The dining halls, science building, home economics building, gymnasium, and many residence halls were all located north of Walker, while the library, Curry, McIver Memorial, student’s building, auditorium, and the administration building were all located south of Walker.

1943 Map of Woman's Collage campus showing buildings bisected by Walker Avenue

The only safe crossing of the busy avenue was at College Avenue.  Over the years, students would cross Walker Ave. via a succession of bridges built to enable foot traffic on College Ave. (running north and south). The bridges were constructed of wood, then iron, and finally concrete in 1928.

1920 aerial view of College Avenue with bridge over Walker Avenue

Walker Ave. became an increasing busy thoroughfare for autos during the 1940s, a situation that only got worse with the post-war boom. Indeed, Walker Ave. was one of the best east west corridors for residents on the western side of Greensboro seeking to drive to the city center.

So, the stage was set for an impasse when Woman’s College building plans included closing the part of Walker Ave. that bisected the heart of its campus, while the city’s residents wanted to maintain Walker Ave. as way to get to downtown from west Greensboro. In 1945, The Board of Trustees approved a plan of building expansion (more than $3,000,000 to be set aside for buildings) for the school that required Walker Ave. be closed, but they did not have the authority to do so.1 Indeed, the plan sited two new buildings, the library (now Walter Clinton Jackson Library) and an expansion to the home economics building (now Stone Building) directly astride the existing Walker Ave. The Greensboro City Council initially denied the request to close Walker Ave. in August of 1945. Next followed suggestions from closure opponents that the school expand westward or even that a 1,350 foot tunnel should be built from Tate St. to a point between Kenilworth and Stirling Streets.2 Westward expansion would not solve the problem of students needing to cross busy Walker Ave. (nor would it allow for the planned library and home economics building expansion) and it was not expected that the state would furnish another $1,000,000 (the estimated cost of the tunnel) to the millions already proposed to the school for expansion. Thus, the tunnel proposal died.

Image used by Dr. W.C. Jackson to promote WC campus after Walker Ave. closure

Still, proponents of the closure of Walker Ave. including Dr. Frank Porter Graham (president of the Consolidated University of North Carolina) W.D. Carmichael, Jr. (comptroller of the University of North Carolina) and Walter Clinton Jackson (chancellor of Woman’s College) among others, worked hard to convince Greensboro and the council to reconsider the closure of Walker Ave. Most arguments were centered around Woman’s College role in the Consolidated University of North Carolina (with Chapel Hill and NC State) and its role as a preeminent school for the education of women. Dr. Graham called Woman’s College the “greatest asset in the building of a greater Greensboro,” and cited closure of Walker Ave. as the “keystone in the college’s great plan for the future.” Carmichael warned that keeping Walker Ave. would block Woman’s College expansion plans and the institution would have no chance to remain competitive with other women’s colleges for growth.3 In a publication to the Greensboro City Council, Dr. Jackson said, “The authorities of the College have made plans for going forward in making this the great institution that it and Greensboro and the State deserve. They are planning great things. They are looking far ahead. They are thinking of the College as it shall be 25 and 50 years from now….It is of the highest importance that the campus we are planning should be a complete unit. The indispensable and fundamental change necessary in carrying out these plans is the closing of Walker Avenue from McIver Street to Forest Avenue.4

Bulldozer breaking up Walker Ave. near the College Ave. bridge

Eventually, the proponents for Walker Ave. closing won out. On June 7^th, 1947, the City Council adopted a resolution setting the closing of Walker Ave. through Woman’s College on the date that the space was needed for actual construction of a building bridging the avenue. At 1pm on September 24, 1948, barricades were placed on Walker Ave. and work started a few days later on the Library which sits on the former site of Walker Ave.5

**Look for a future post showcasing views of the College Avenue bridge used to cross Walker Avenue!**

1- W.C. Jackson to City Council of Greensboro, March 5, 1946
2-"City Authorities Offer Avenue Tunnel Project" Greensboro Daily News, February 26, 1946
3-"College Request for Closing Street Taken under Advisement by Council" Greensboro Daily News, March 6, 1946 **Special thanks to Mark Schumacher for help in tracking down the date of this article!**
4-W.C. Jackson to City Council of Greensboro, March 5, 1946
5-"Walker Avenue Closed Today" Greensboro Daily News, September 24, 1948

Bringing a Little of Paris to Petty

Do you know of a prominent UNC Greensboro campus structure that incorporates features from a Parisian landmark into its overall design and function? Any ideas? Hint—think of a structure that connects to College Avenue. Still not sure? Take a look at the ninety-five foot bridge that links the Petty Building with the College Avenue pedestrian walkway. The bridge, completed in 2007, is a replica of the Pont des Arts that spans the Seine River in Paris.

Design for 2007 Bridge

The Petty Building (known at the time as the Science Building) was opened to students in 1940. Facing a growth in programs and students, this Public Works Administration-funded building was designed to meet the needs of the College’s Chemistry, Biology, and Physics departments. The building also contained dark rooms for the Photography Department and x-ray equipment for the X-Ray Department, as well as space for animals that were used in experiments. A wing was added to the original structure in 1952. In 1960, the building was named in honor of Mary Petty head of the Chemistry Department from 1893 to 1934.

Science Building, ca. 1959

In 2006, UNC Greensboro embarked on a $15.4 million dollar renovation project of the Petty Building. The primary focus of the project was to renovate the building’s electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems. Besides upgrading key systems, the project also sought to convert the science building to classrooms and offices for the departments of Physics and Astronomy, Mathematics and Statistics, and Computer Science.

During the planning phase of the project, members of UNCG’s Facilities, Design, and Construction Department and architect Jody Peer (Jenkins-Peer Architects) considered different options to improve access to the nearly 70 year old building. The design team struggled with the fact that the building stands ten feet below the road grade of College Avenue. Additionally, access to the building’s main entrance required walking up one of the two matching curved staircases. The planner’s dilemma was how to maintain the original neo-Classical features of the building while providing special needs access for students, faculty, and visitors. During one of the design team’s brain-storming sessions, Jody Peer showed the group a photo that he had taken of a pedestrian bridge that he had seen in Paris. After a review of some sketches, the design team embraced this creative and visually striking solution.

Pont des Arts

Between World War One and World War Two, the University experienced a massive building boom. A great deal of the expansion occurred along College Avenue and Spring Garden Street. By the late 1930s, space along College Avenue was filling up with dorms, administrative offices, and classrooms. One of the remaining open spaces was the school’s athletic fields, which were designed for both the College and the Curry Training (Practice School). The actual playing fields were surrounded by earthen berms that served as open air seating. Visitors could sit and view student teams compete against each other. After selecting this space for the new science building, the College inexplicably decided not to raise the overall level of the building site to meet College Avenue. While other school building were built at the level of College Avenue, this building’s first floor would be constructed well below the level of the roadway. As a result, students were forced to walk down a flight of stairs from College Avenue to access this new building.

During the fall 2007 term, workers prepared the ground for the new bridge that would connect College Avenue and the renovated Petty Building. Huge steel tresses to support the bridge’s walkway were lifted into place by a crane. Unlike its Parisian cousin, the “deck” of the UNC Greensboro bridge would not be made of wood, but instead it would be constructed of translucent glazed glass bricks. Below the walkway, lights were installed pointing up towards the under-belly of the bridge. At night, these lights shine up towards the glass pathway and create a wondrous glow.

You might be wondering why a nineteenth-century French bridge was selected over other bridge designs. It seems to have been driven by functionality and elegance of design. The Pont des Arts was the first metal bridge to be installed in Paris. This 1804 pedestrian bridge links the Institut de France and the Palais du Louvre. Unlike the heavy Paris stone bridges that span the Seine River, this metal bridge exudes a lightness and simplicity. For many visitors to the city, it is a quiet sanctuary from the bustle of traffic and a wonderful spot for expansive views of the city. Interestingly, around the time of the installation of the UNC Greensboro bridge in 2007, Parisians began to see tourists attaching padlocks to the railings and side grates of the Pont des Arts and throwing the lock’s key into the river. The locks had the names of each couple written or engraved on them. This new “tradition” was to represent a couple’s committed love. By 2015, the city of Paris citing safety concerns began to remove the estimated one million locks from the bridge.

Locks Attached to the Pont des Arts