Completed in 1854 as part of the South Side Railroad from Petersburg to Lynchburg, High Bridge crossed the Appomattox River east of Farmville on 21 brick piers, stretching 2,400 feet in length and ranging from 60 to 125 feet in height, with an original wood bridge that included a pedestrian walkway beside the tracks and a wagon bridge below. On April 6 and 7, 1865, the bridges became strategically important to the armies of General Robert E. Lee and General Ulysses S. Grant as they moved westward from Richmond toward Appomattox Court House. On April 6, following the Battle of Sailor’s Creek, a small group of Union infantry and cavalry attempted to destroy the bridge but was deterred by Confederate horsemen who arrived on the scene. On the morning of April 7, quick-marching Union troops reached High Bridge as Confederates were setting fire to it after crossing, and Grant's men used the lower wagon bridge to continue their pursuit before eventually coming into contact with Lee's army around nearby Cumberland Church.
