SHELBURNE — In 90 years, at least one thing about this community hasn’t changed.
That’s the Bridge of Flowers, which opened in 1908, and blossoms over the Deerfield River each year with a mixture of locals and mesmerized travelers and, yes, flowers.
The concrete arches upholding the foot bridge — which used to be trolley bridge — have stood the test of time, and the crossing has been a fixture of the Shelburne Falls vista, a point made clear by the Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum’s collection of sepia and black-and-white photos of the bridge from the early 1900s.
“A lot of those houses are still there,” said Louis Musante of the Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum, which had a table at the Saturday’s Bridge of Flowers celebration at the Shelburne-Buckland Community Center.
This weekend was the celebration of the bridge’s 90th birthday, which kicked off with a “Parade of the Children” and ended with a gathering at the community center, speeches from volunteers and politicians like state Sen. Adam Hinds, D-Pittsfield, and state Rep. Natalie Blais, D-Sunderland, music from the Shelburne Falls Military Band and cake.
The Bridge of Flowers has been the host of races, performances, fairs and annual tranquility for decades.
“Love blooms on the Bridge of Flowers,” said Annie Hassett, who sang a song about the bridge at this weekend’s celebration.
Hassett said she used to walk the bridge every day about 10 years ago, and it’s inspired her to write poetry and a song about the location. She also mentioned the volunteers who have kept the bridge clean and beautiful, having to pick up “a thousand cigarette butts” at times.
“We walk hand-in-hand on the Bridge of Flowers,” Hassett described the bridge as a romantic setting. “Birds singing sweet in the air… I don’t know if we’re in Paris, but why should I care.”
The Bridge of Flowers was constructed at the beginning of the last century by the Shelburne Falls and Colrain Street Railway as a means to move freight between Shelburne, Buckland and Colrain. In 1929, the bridge was made a walkway and flowers were first planted. Since then, it’s been under the supervision of the Shelburne Falls Area Women’s Club, which has a subcommittee dedicated to the bridge.
According to Annette Szpila, chair of the Bridge of Flowers Committee, the maintenance of the bridge wouldn’t be possible without volunteers, and she “can’t imagine” the bridge would even exist in its form without them. Saturday, she said, was meant to be a celebration of those many past and present volunteers.
At the bridge Saturday, a special “Friends Tree” stood. The “tree” is a metal sculpture holding signs that list the couple hundred names of all those who have donated to the bridge this year.
In addition to Saturday’s celebrations, the nonprofit Pothole Pictures screened its gardening movie, “Five Seasons: The Gardens of Piet Oudolf,” depicting the gardens of Piet Oudolf, who Pothole Pictures’ Jim Kessler describes as the “Mick Jagger, David Bowie and Prince” of the gardening world, all rolled into one.
Reach David McLellan at dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.