Peters Creek S-Bridge was built in 1828 along the National Road in Ohio after that route replaced Zane’s Trace, whose 1803 crossing of Peters Creek had used logs a few hundred yards to the north. The stone bridge was constructed to handle the increased traffic expected on the new road, and its S-shape resulted from offset approaches that kept the road straight while allowing an arch to cross the stream directly in a simpler and less expensive way than an angled crossing. As improved roads and bridges were needed with the rise of the automobile and the development of a national highway system in the 1920s and 1930s, much of the National Road became part of U.S. Route 40, and the bridge was abandoned when the road was realigned south of it. After years of neglect and damage from four successive floods in 2005 left it near collapse, a complete rehabilitation began in the spring of 2007 and was finished in November, removing much of the original structure, strengthening it with modern tools and materials, and preserving it as a tribute to the National Road and the engineering of its construction.

Photo: Rev. Ronald Irick

Photo: Rev. Ronald Irick

Photo: Rev. Ronald Irick

Photo: Rev. Ronald Irick

Photo: Rev. Ronald Irick

New Concord, Ohio · USA