thumb|270px|right|Pakenham Bridge, May 2009 The '''Pakenham Bridge''' is a stone bridge with five arches that crosses the Mississippi River at the town of Pakenham within Mississippi Mills, Ontario, Canada. The bridge measures {{Convert|268|ft}} long, {{Convert|22|ft}} high, and {{Convert|25|ft}} wide. It is the only one of this type in North America.<ref name=county>{{cite web|title=The Seven Wonders of Lanark County: Pakenham Five Span Bridge|url=http://www.lanarkcounty.ca/AssetFactory.aspx?did=4511|publisher=County of Lanark|accessdate=28 December 2014}}</ref>
The bridge was built in 1903 by O'Toole & Keating, Scottish masons from Ottawa, for a cost of $14,500. The stones, the largest of which weighs 5 tons, came from a local quarry. As a result of local pressure to preserve it, the bridge was never replaced with a newer one and restored in 1984. At that time, the bridge was also strengthened with reinforced concrete to accommodate car and truck traffic.<ref name=county/>
With a parking lot and rapids right at the bridge, it is a popular picnic spot. Here the Mississippi River drops a few meters over a wide cascade with exposed bedrock, but below the rapids there is a strong undertow that has claimed several lives.<ref>{{cite web|author1=John Carter|title=Drowning in Pakenham prompts undertow warning|url=http://www.insideottawavalley.com/news-story/3799659-drowning-in-pakenham-prompts-undertow-warning/|website=insideottawavalley.com|publisher=Metroland Media|accessdate=28 December 2014|date=July 21, 2011}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{Commons category-inline}}
{{Authority control}} {{coord|45|20|8.3|N|76|17|13.4|W|type:landmark|display=title}}
Category:Deck arch bridges in Canada Category:Designated heritage properties in Ontario Category:Ontario Heritage Trust Category:Road bridges in Ontario
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