The Philippi Covered Bridge, on the

Tygart Valley River The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed Aug ...

, is the main local landmark and historical icon of

Philippi, West Virginia Philippi ('FILL-uh-pea') is a city in and the county seat of Barbour County, West Virginia, Barbour County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 2,928 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. In 1861, the city was the site of the ...

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The celebrated bridge was commissioned by the

General Assembly of Virginia The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 1619 ...

and constructed in 1852 by

Lemuel Chenoweth Lemuel Chenoweth (25 June 1811—26 August 1887) was a carpenter, legislator and self-taught architect. He is best known as one of 19th century America's master covered bridge builders. Chenoweth and his brother Eli constructed 20 bridges durin ...

, a well-known Appalachian bridge builder, to provide a link on an important segment of the vital Beverly-Fairmont Turnpike between Beverly (Chenoweth's hometown) and Fairmont. The bridge has strong associations with the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, especially the

Battle of Philippi The Battle of Philippi was the final battle in the Wars of the Second Triumvirate between the forces of Mark Antony and Octavian (of the Second Triumvirate) and the leaders of Julius Caesar's assassination, Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC, at P ...

(1861). The Philippi Covered Bridge is the oldest and longest

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

in West Virginia and one of only two remaining in Barbour County. It is also the only

on the

United States Numbered Highway System The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these hi ...

(as part of

U.S. Route 250 U.S. Route 250 (US 250) is a route of the United States Numbered Highway System, and is a spur of U.S. Route 50. It currently runs for from Richmond, Virginia to Sandusky, Ohio. It passes through the states of Virginia, West Virginia, and Ohio. ...

). It was placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1972.

History

Bidding, design and construction

The circumstances of the bidding on the contract for the bridges in western Virginia are given by Hu Maxwell:

Bidders were present [at Richmond, Virginia, Richmond] in large numbers from the East and the North, with all sorts of models and plans, including iron structures, wire cables, cantilevers, stone arches, and wooden bridges of many kinds. Mr. Chenoweth was there with his model made of hickory wood, as strong as it could possibly be made, not to exceed the required size. So far as appearances went, some of the New England Yankees had models of perfect form and beauty, painted and enameled in the highest art. On the appointed day, the bidders all assembled before the Board of Public Works, and each showed his model, and set forth his claims of what weight his bridge would sustain. Mr. Chenoweth was one of the last called forward to show what he had. His plain wooden model did not attract much attention; but he created consternation among the other bidders when he placed his model on two chairs, one end resting on each, and then stood on his little bridge, and called on the other architects to put theirs to the test by doing the same. Not one would do it, for they knew their models would be crushed. If the Philippi bridge were as strong in proportion to its size as Mr. Chenoweth's model, it would sustain the weight of a man six hundred feet high. The test decided the contest, and Mr Chenoweth was given the contract for the bridges.

The structure is 285½ feet (originally 312 feet) long and wide and was originally supported by three massive sandstone piers constructed by Emmett J. O'Brien. The bridge design incorporates the Burr Truss, "Long" Burr Arch Truss and was built for $12,180.68. It is one of few surviving "double-barreled" (two lane)

s in the United States.

Civil War

The bridge was used on 3 June 1861 by both Union (American Civil War), Union and Confederate States of American, Confederate troops after the

, by some reckonings the first land battle of the

. The bridge was the first to be captured in the war by either side and was used for a time as a barracks by the victorious Union troops. The bridge narrowly escaped burning in April and May 1863 at the time of the Confederate raids on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, B&O Railroad west of Cumberland, Maryland. Orders were issued by General William E. Jones (general), William E. Jones for the burning of it and of the covered bridge at Rowlesburg, but the intercession of several locals of Southern sympathies (especially Elder Joshua S. Corder) saved both.

Structural modifications

The bridge has undergone a number of renovations after being severely damaged at least seven times over the years. In 1934, increased motorized traffic mandated the addition of two concrete piers to the bridge's substructure (for a total of five) along with a new steel reinforced concrete deck (to replace the old wooden one) and an external walkway to better accommodate pedestrian traffic. The bridge was damaged by a severe flood on 4–5 November 1985 and was virtually destroyed by fire on 2 February 1989. A gasoline tanker truck refilling underground tanks at a nearby filling station overfilled a tank, spilling gasoline which ran down into the bridge. A car passing through the bridge then sparked a fire when its exhaust system backfired. The bridge was then closed to traffic until a $1.4 million reconstruction was completed and the bridge reopened on 16 September 1991. The reconstruction, under the direction of the bridge historian and West Virginia University professor Emory Kemp, included replacing the damaged yellow poplar supports. Care was taken to restore the exterior to its original appearance: the rounded double arch entrances were restored, red-painted shingles (also of poplar) were affixed to the roof and new external wooden siding was replaced in a horizontal orientation. Today, the original, burnt wooden trusses and supports can still be seen when driving through the bridge.

Folklore

*A local legend once asserted that US President Abraham Lincoln and Confederate President Jefferson Davis were witnessed by a small boy meeting secretly in the bridge late in the course of the American Civil War to discuss peace terms.

References

External links

"The Covered Bridge at Philippi" at the Appalachian Blacksmiths Association website
{{Authority control American Civil War sites in West Virginia Barbour County, West Virginia in the American Civil War Bridges completed in 1852 Western Virginia campaign Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Buildings and structures in Barbour County, West Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Barbour County, West Virginia Transportation in Barbour County, West Virginia Tourist attractions in Barbour County, West Virginia Wooden bridges in West Virginia Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia U.S. Route 250 1852 establishments in Virginia Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Burr Truss bridges in the United States