Old Sublimity Bridge

Old Sublimity Bridge is a pedestrian crossing over the Rockcastle River in Sublimity Springs, Kentucky, between Laurel and Pulaski Counties.

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Old Sublimity Bridge is a pedestrian crossing over the Rockcastle River in Sublimity Springs, Kentucky, between Laurel and Pulaski Counties.

The first permanent river crossing at this location was a foot travel suspension bridge constructed by the U.S. Forest Service in 1938. ²

In 1942, a one-lane Pratt pony truss was built by the 13 men of the Civilian Conservation Corps, Company 3552, to facilitate the passage of KY Route 192 over the river. ^{1 4} The construction process involved manual methods, including hand cranes to position the beams and a hand winch for placing stones in the two piers, rising 40 feet above the riverbed. ¹ Jim Wallace, the senior foreman, and Denes Rizardi, an Italian stonemason, oversaw the bridge project. ⁴ The stones used for the piers and abutments were quarried from Laurel County’s hilltop and Pulaski County’s Bee Cliff area.

In 1963, a new highway alignment led to the bypass of the bridge, and the pony truss bridge was converted into a pedestrian-only structure. ⁴ Subsequently, in 1997, the U.S. Forest Service commissioned a contractor to install a new wooden platform at a cost of $7,000. ¹ The project concluded in 1999, and the bridge was officially dedicated for pedestrian use on October 13.

The bridge endured damage during the February 2019 flooding, ^{3 4} with an unattended campfire on the deck causing a 10-foot hole post-floods. ⁴ After undergoing repairs, the bridge reopened in 2022. ³

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Details

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Sources

1. Tagaml, Ty. “Building bridges.” Lexington Herald-Leader, 14 Oct. 1999, pp. A1-A12.
2. Swain, Enos. “Building of Southern Railroad Brought Boom to Somerset.” Lexington Leader, 30 Jun. 1938, p. 3.44.
3. Mudd, Aaron. “Campground opens again inside Daniel Boone National Forest.” Messenger-Inquirer, 5 Apr. 2022, p. C3.
4. “Old Sublimity Bridge.” U.S. Forest Service.