The Fox Creek S Bridge is located along the National Road west of New Concord in Guernsey County, Ohio.
History
The Fox Creek S Bridge is located west of New Concord in Guernsey County, Ohio. Constructed in 1828, it formerly carried the National Road and U.S. Route 40 over Fox Creek. 1
The crossing is one of several masonry S bridges built in Ohio and Pennsylvania, and it contains a 30-foot stone arch span over the creek, set on a line perpendicular to the stream’s flow, while the roadway curves on either side of the arch. 2 Built by Kinkeade & Beck 5 of cut stone laid in courses of one foot or more, the S Bridge originally had a brick floor. 1 Its distinctive S-shaped form is both unusual and practical. The curves ease the approaches to the crossing, reduce the length of arch needed to span the stream, avoid steeper grades, and help protect the backfill from erosion. At the east end, the curve turned slightly less than 20° south; at the west end, it turned slightly less than 22° north.
During World War I, the entire National Road from Cumberland, Maryland, to Vandalia, Illinois, was paved in brick to accommodate military traffic. 2 The Fox Creek S Bridge was the last section to be bricked, and that work was completed in 1919.
In 1936, the Ohio Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution persuaded the Ohio Highway Department to route the road around the old structure rather than replace it with a new bridge. 1
Gallery
Details
- State: Ohio
- Route: National Road
- Status: Active (Pedestrian)
- Type: Closed Spandrel Arch, Stone Arch
- Total Length: 140'
- Main Span Length: 30'
- Deck Width: 26'
Sources
- Loveday, Amos J., Jr. “S” Bridge II. National Register of Historic Places Inventory—Nomination Form, July 1972.
- “The Fox Creek ‘S’ Bridge Park.” Interpretative Marker, 1997.