CAMDEN – Bakery Bridge in downtown Camden is due for an overhaul beginning iJan. 9, which will close the lower end of Route 105 (Washington Street) and result in a rerouting of traffic for approximately six months.

The 47-foot-long Bakery Bridge, built in 1933, spans the Megunticook River as it passes beneath the Knox Mill, other old buildings and Route 1 before spilling into Camden Harbor. 

Bakery Bridge is made of concrete, sitting on concrete abutments and a center pier. In 2014, the DOT determined that that substructures had a satisfactory rating but were scaling and spalling. That means that the cold weather freezing and thawing pattern causes the concrete capillaries to expand and create pressure so that the concrete begins to crack.

The $1.3 million bridge rebuild will be accompanied by power pole replacements and a $96,000 investment by the Town of Camden in relocating the sewer line that runs underneath the bridge. The pipe is encased in concrete, which in turn is incorporated in the concrete bridge abutments.

The DOT told Camden a year ago that the town must replace the pipe under the bridge.  The estimated cost to the Town for the sewer work is $96,150, and according to Select Board minutes, money for the sewer project would derive from the town’s 2017 budget.

The DOT expects the rehabilitated bridge to serve the area for another 50 years. Work includes placing a mat of reinforced steel into the existing abutments, replacing the concrete face of each abutment, and replacing the bridge seats. (Click here for the DOT’s engineering and geological report)

At the Dec. 20 Select Board meeting, Town Manager Patricia Finnigan outlined the traffic detour plan, and said there will be a public meeting held by the DOT to inform residents about the recommended alternative roads.

Route 105 is a primary local commuter road, with residents of Appleton, Hope and parts of Lincolnville driving it on a daily basis to and from downtown Camden.

The board agreed that it is imperative to inform the public soon, because the targeted bridge closure date is Jan. 9.

“Do we have an idea why it is called Bakery Bridge,” asked board member Leonard Lookner.

“I have not gotten to the bottom of that,” said Finnegan.

“Someone make a phone call to Barbie Dyer,” said Lookner.

In the Sketches of the History of the Town of Camden, Maine: Including Incidental References to the Neighboring Places and Adjacent Waters, by John L. Locke and published in 1859, there are references to a bakery that once was near the dam below the iron foundry owned by D. Knowlton and Henry Knight, in the vicinity of Bakery Bridge.

Locke’s book has been scanned by Google Books. (Search edward bradbury bakery camden maine and it will pop up.)

Whether or not the Bakery Bridge takes its name from the nearby operations has yet to be determined.

The bakery was owned by Edward Bradbury, and then by Horton & Alden. 

“The principal labor of the bakery, as may be supposed, is done by machinery,” wrote Locke. “In 1858, the average number of barrels of flour made into crackers, ship, and ginger bread, was three per day. Many of the surrounding towns are supplied with the ‘staff of life’ by the ‘Camden bread’ carriage, which has given the bakery a favorable reputation in this section of the state.”

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657