This bridge used to connect Bridgeport, OH to Wheeling Island, WVA. It's been closed for a number of years but never torn down. In fact, most of the bridges I've shown you have long been out of service. I wonder why they're left standing? Too expensive to demolish? That's ok, I'm kinda glad. They're more stylish than the new ones. Tired but proud monuments to the glory days when Steel was King of the Valley.
This is Wheeling Island as seen from the top of a hill in Ohio. To give you some perspective of just how wide the river is, the Island is a small town itself. In its heyday, this was where people of wealth lived in their big, beautiful homes. Go figure, it floods nearly every year. We could never figure out why rich people would live there.
This is the revamped Blaine Hill Bridge. My grandfather helped build the first one (see Sept '07). It's actually not a bridge over water, but is a 500' climb up a hill on old Route 40. Joe grew up less than a mile from here.
Since it's on dry land, I could go underneath and take these neat upshots of the arches. I think the stairs are also an interesting piece of architecture.
Below is the original Blaine Hill Bridge. Very historical. It's called an S bridge. I wrote a little bit about it in my September '07 blog.
And that, friends, concludes our tour of the Ohio Valley bridges. Next up, the long-awaited cemetary tour. Oh yes. If you grew up west of the Mississippi, you've probably never seen old cemetaries like we have back east. Stay tuned...
1 comment:
Cool bridges.
I wonder if the rich people didn't mind the flooding so much because they weren't the ones having to clean their homes after the floods.
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