Route 12 ran from Paterson to Phillipsburg.
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Eastbound side of Old Bloomfield Avenue in Pine Brook over the Passaic River. This bridge is the first bridge marking the 1920s routes that I discovered, quite by accident. It was constructed in 1921. It goes over the Passaic River in Pine Brook, and leads straight into the junkyard. This breaks up Route 12 into 2 segments, so it is no longer possible to travel its length uninterrupted. Photo taken |
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Westbound side of Old Bloomfield Avenue in Pine Brook over the Passaic River. Another view of same bridge. This bridge may be the oldest survivng NJ highway bridge (1921). From the junkyard, old Route 12 heads west on Old Bloomfield Avenue, where there are some really nice bridges dated 1922. Since that road is not a current state road, the bridge markings are not covered by barricades!< Photo taken |
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This is the end of the road for this segment of Old Route 12. This bridge is referred to in the old annual reports as the Pine Brook Bridge. The new bridge, built around 1939, now crosses the river very close to this one. Photo taken |
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We returned here several months later, only to find the bridge refurbished, while leaving the original stamping intact! We were so happy about this that we wrote to the Morris County roads department to thank them for preserving this bit of history. There are also some very nice sections of Old Route 12 on curernt day NJ 57, especially a stretch called the Concrete Mile, which we'll photograph later. Photo taken |
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Rt 12 192? Sec 5 sta 43 Looking east Boro of Washington From NJ State Archives |
| NJDOT 1917 Annual Report: Route No. 12 Paterson to Phillipsburg, via Little Falls, Pine Brook, Parsippany, Denville, thence over Route No. 5 to Budd's Lake, thence to Washington, Broadway and Phillipsburg. A survey was made of a new line to have an undercrossing of Erie Railroad at Little Falls Station, thence across private right of way to and across Route No. 8 near Little Falls and into Pine Brook Road, west of Little Falls. The line surveyed for Route No. 5 between Netcong and Hackettstown will also carry Route No. 12 to a junction with the Washington road just east of Hackettstown. No other important changes of alignment are contemplated. |
| NJDH 1925 Official State Map: "Paterson to Phillipsburg, via Little Falls, Pine Brook, Parsippany, Denville, thence over route 5 to Hackettstown, thence via Washington and Broadway." - NJHD 1925. |
| 1926, Chapter 227 " Route #12 Alter. ALTERATION OF ROUTE #12; from Paterson to Phillipsburg by way of Farifield, Pine Brook, Parsippany, Denville, thence over Route No. 5 to Budd's Lake, thence to Washington and Broadway. " - NJHD 1925. |
| Dan Moraseski: : Phillipsburg to Paterson on NJ 57-US 46-CR 646. US 22-NJ 57-CR 670 thru Penwell-NJ 57-NJ 182-US 46-CR 513 in Rockaway-CR 644-US 46-Bloomfield Av in Pine Brook-NJ 159-US 46-CR 615-CR 631-CR 646-CR 644-CR 640-CR 636-CR 639 |
| Edward Fitzgerald 7/5/2004: : On 12, I drove from Phillipsburg to Port Colden before turning back. This route is chock-a-block full of bridges, but every bridge I saw was well barricaded. Often the 12 was still visible below the steel, but not much else. Many of these bridges are severely weathered and crumbly. At Port Colden I saw a later bridge that was very interesting. It was from the Route 24 period, post 1927, and was notable because the route stamp was on the END of the rail, not the face towards the road, so it was not obscured. Check it out; it's really cool. |
