When a bridge has a name, one can bet a couple of things are true. First, that the bridge is significant enough to merit being named, and second that the person for whom the bridge is named has done something important. I don’t know if I’ve ever driven over the Colonel Patrick O’Rorke bridge and knew nothing about Patrick O’Rorke until recently, so I was looking forward to learning about both as we made our visit to this bridge the first stop on our quest to visit every bridge over the Genesee.
On the Saturday after Thanksgiving 2020, my wife Ursula and I drove up to Charlotte, the part of Rochester where the Genesee empties into Lake Ontario. Heading north up Lake Avenue, we took a right on Pattenwood Avenue, crossed the bridge, parked in a small shopping center in Irondequoit that featured Herrema’s Food Market (a small local grocery store we had never heard of before) and then walked to the bridge.
As we approached the bridge we had a choice. Should we walk across it first or try to get a view from below? There’s a well-maintained series of trails around the Genesee River, so we decided to head down below the bridge first. Two things struck me there. First were the extensive facilities for boaters to store, moor, and launch their boats (including dozens of small cabins lining the riverside, each with an associated dock). Second was the impressive architecture of the bridge as you approached it from below.
The Patrick O’Rorke bridge is supported by three piers two of which are in the Genesee River and one of which is on the east side on land. We had fun posing underneath the large arches that support the pier on land, and it gives you some sense of the scale.
I loved the view of the bridge from down below, with its inscription on each pier that supports the lift bridge facing the boaters on the Genesee River.
We then headed up top and crossed the bridge on foot. The view on both sides is spectacular. Looking north you get a good view of the river as it empties into the lake, but we were as struck by the mechanisms that facilitate its role as a lift bridge. The warning bell on the crossing guard, for example, looks like it’s significantly older than 2004 when the bridge opened to the public.
We also were struck by some of the small details like the individual numbering on the metal components of the bridge railing, each of which had a unique number that presumably dictated where it was placed.
Still, the most distinctive part of the bridge is the small house that is used to operate the bridge.
It’s a lovely structure, beautifully designed and if you are on foot you can read the memorial plaque for Patrick O’Rorke. Born in Ireland in 1837, he came to the United States when he was one-year-old, went to West Point where he graduated first in his class, and served in the Civil War in the Corps of Engineers. In 1862 he returned home to marry Clara Wadsworth Bishop, and then took command of the 140th Volunteer Infantry Regiment, one of two new units being mustered out of Monroe County. Under his command, he led the 140th in a number of encounters including at Gettysburg, where he was killed in the heated and crucial fight to take control of Little Round Top. An interesting and informative account of his life gives more information about his life, including the fact that Clara never remarried, became a nun, and administered several convents in Michigan, New York, and Rhode Island.
On both sides of the bridge there are landings that afford good views of the river in either direction. Looking north you can see the old railway depot where passengers heading for the waterside amusements of old Charlotte used to disembark.
If you continue across the bridge and take the bike path on the northwest side of the bridge, you will find an overlook area that affords not only a fabulous view of the bridge but also a series of about a dozen informational panels that explain the history of the area and the work done to save it by local resident and visionary Bill Davis. Reading the panels also helped answer a question that both Ursula and I had, which was “Wasn’t there a Stutson Street Bridge?” It turned out there was, close to where the Patrick O’Rorke stands now, and it was torn down after the new bridge was constructed in 2004.
The light was beginning to fade, so we headed across the roadway and crossed the bridge on the south side. That provides a magnificent view of the Genesee River towards Turning Stone Park (one of my favorite walks in Rochester).
As the sun set, the cold hastened our steps, but we couldn’t help stopping to marvel at the seam of the lift bridge with the water flowing underneath far below and the glow of the brownstone bridge house in the fading light. The architects and builders of the bridge created a beautiful little gem that provided a wonderful start to our exploration of the bridges of the Genesee River.
Bridges of the Genesee River 
Reblogged this on The Bridgehunter's Chronicles and commented:
The next few days we will provide you with a sample of bridges that are located along the Genesee River in New York state thanks to a guide that has been put together by Jon- Paul Dyson and his wife Ursula. Like in the blog on haunted bridges, we will present four examples, yet you can subscribe to their blog by clicking on their homepage and adding your contact details. Our first of four examples features the Patrick O’Rorke Drawbridge.
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