In 1927, as automobile ownership and commerce were increasing, Pleasants County ferry owner Hiram A. Carpenter promoted a bridge at St. Marys to improve access between Ohio and West Virginia and formed the Clarksburg-Columbus Short Route Bridge Company to secure financing, state approvals, design, and construction. J.E. Greiner Company of Baltimore, Maryland, was hired to prepare plans for the Short Route Bridge, which was nearly identical to the Silver Bridge at Pt. Pleasant. The Silver Bridge's original design had called for wire cables for suspension support, but lower-priced eyebar members were chosen instead, making it the first bridge in the United States to use eyebars for suspension support; the Short Route Bridge became the second built that way. Construction began in November 1927 and was completed on October 25, 1928. West Virginia purchased the bridge in 1937 and removed its toll in 1946. On September 16, 1967, it was renamed the Hi Carpenter Bridge in honor of Hiram Carpenter. After the Silver Bridge collapsed on December 15, 1967, killing 46 people when an eyebar failed because of a small crack enlarged by internal corrosion known as stress corrosion cracking, investigators concluded that eyebar design lacked sufficient redundancy for structural support. Because of its similar design and eyebar construction, the Hi Carpenter Bridge was temporarily closed on December 18, 1967, permanently closed on June 18, 1969, and never reopened because the same flaw could not then be detected without disassembling the eyebar joints. On June 29, 1971, all but the truss span over the thoroughfare approaching St. Marys and the ramp bridge to Middle Island were demolished. In 2017, the truss span was rehabilitated and the ramp bridge was replaced, and the remaining structure continues to provide access to the island, now a wildlife refuge, while preserving part of the original bridge design.