Willimantic's Whimsical Thread City Crossing
For those of you who are not familiar with the Frog Bridge you're missing a lovely piece of American roadside kitsch that has attracted people from miles and mile around to the former city of Willimantic, Connecticut (the city government was dissolved in 1983 with the area reverting back to the Town of Windham from which it was incorporated in 1893 as a section of). Officially known as the Thread City Crossing , the new bridge replaces an older bridge 900 feet to the east that carried Windham Road in Willimantic from Route 32 across to Route 66. The original bridge was built in 1857 and though plans were drawn up in 1872 for a new bridge, it wasn't until 1991 when the State of Connecticut finally approved funding for a new bridge. After the State DOT presented their plans for the new bridge, local residents deemed it to be too bland and pressured the State for something with a little more character. Surprisingly the State relented and an architect was brought on board wh...