Humpback
Bridge
James River in Alleghany County, Virginia
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and #AST-3VA
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It's easy
how to see how Humpback Bridge earned its name. By design, the
100-foot long, single-span structure stands four feet higher at
its center than at either end. Built in 1857, Humpback Bridge
is the oldest of Virginia's eight remaining covered bridges.
Once part
of the James River & Kanawha Turnpike (JR&KT), it succeeds three
other bridges at the site. The first structure, built in the 1820s,
washed away in a flood in 1837. The second fell victim to a flood
in 1842. The third collapsed in 1856.
In 1929, traffic
was diverted to a new steel truss bridge built nearby. With the
exception of a farmer who stored hay in it, nobody used Humpback
Bridge after that. In 1954, the Business and Professional Women's
Club of Covington and the Covington Chamber of Commerce raised
the funds necessary to restore and preserve the covered bridge
as part of Alleghany County's history.
You can visit
Humpback Bridge from I-64 by taking exit 10 to Route 60 and traveling
one-half mile east, or by taking Route 60 west from Covington.
Text
© 1999 Terry White, Drawing © 1999 Bill Harrah