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 and rising from 60 to 125 feet; the original wooden structure 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, after the Battle of Sailor's Creek, a small group of Union infantry and cavalry tried to destroy the bridge but was deterred by Confederate horsemen who arrived at the scene. On the morning of April 7, quick-marching Union troops reached High Bridge as Confederates were setting it on fire after crossing, and by using the lower wagon bridge to continue the pursuit, Grant's men pressed on and eventually came into contact with Lee's army near Cumberland Church.
