The New River Gorge Bridge is a steel
arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ...
long over the
New River Gorge
The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is a unit of the United States National Park Service (NPS) designed to protect and maintain the New River Gorge in southern West Virginia in the Appalachian Mountains. Established in 1978 as a nat ...
near
Fayetteville, West Virginia
Fayetteville is a town in and the county seat of Fayette County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 2,892 at the 2010 census.
Fayetteville was listed as one of the 2006 "Top 10 Coolest Small Towns in America" by Budget Travel Maga ...
, in the
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...
of the eastern United States. With an arch long, the New River Gorge Bridge was the world's longest single-span arch bridge for 26 years;
it is now the fifth
longest; the longest outside of China. Part of
U.S. Route 19, its construction marked the completion of
Corridor L
The Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS) is a series of highway corridors in the Appalachia region of the eastern United States. The routes are designed as local and regional routes for improving economic development in the historica ...
of the
Appalachian Development Highway System
The Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS) is a series of highway corridors in the Appalachia region of the eastern United States. The routes are designed as local and regional routes for improving economic development in the historical ...
. An average of 16,200 motor vehicles cross the bridge each day.
The roadway of the New River Gorge Bridge is above the New River,
[ making the bridge one of the highest vehicular bridges in the world; it is the third highest in the United States. When completed in 1977, it was the world's highest bridge carrying a regular roadway, a title it held until the 2001 opening of the ]Liuguanghe Bridge
Liuguanghe Bridge is a beam bridge at Liu Guangzhen, Guizhou, China. It held the record for world's highest bridge between 2001 and 2003, surpassing the 72-year-old, Royal Gorge Bridge, until the opening of the Beipan River Guanxing Highwa ...
in China. Because of its height, the bridge has attracted daredevils since its construction. It is now the centerpiece of the annual "Bridge Day", during which hundreds of people, with appropriate equipment, are permitted to climb on or jump from the bridge. In 2005, the structure gained additional attention when the US Mint issued the West Virginia state quarter with the bridge depicted on one side. In 2013, the bridge was listed 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 ...
.
History
Construction began on the bridge in June 1974, and was completed on October 22, 1977. The bridge was designed by the Michael Baker Company under the direction of Chief Engineer Clarence V. Knudsen and Corporate Bridge Engineer Frank J. Kempf, and executed by U.S. Steel's American Bridge Division. The final cost of construction was $37 million (equivalent to $ million in dollars). It was approximately $4 million, or $ million in dollars, over bid. It is made from COR-TEN
Weathering steel, often referred to by the genericised trademark COR-TEN steel and sometimes written without the hyphen as corten steel, is a group of steel alloys which were developed to eliminate the need for painting, and form a stable ru ...
steel. The use of COR-TEN in construction presented several challenges; notable among them was ensuring that the weld points weathered at the same rate as the rest of the steel.
At the time, the bridge was the West Virginia Department of Highways' largest project in its history, important both in terms of its overall cost, and that the federal government provided 70 percent of the funding. Construction gave a boost to the state and local economy; completion improved transportation. The bridge cut the vehicle travel time from one side of the gorge to the other from about 45 minutes to 45 seconds.
On August 14, 2013, the bridge was listed 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 ...
. Even though it was not yet 50 years old, it was listed for its exceptional impact on local transportation and its engineering significance.
Tourism
The New River Gorge Bridge is within the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...
's New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, which protects this portion of the New River Gorge
The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is a unit of the United States National Park Service (NPS) designed to protect and maintain the New River Gorge in southern West Virginia in the Appalachian Mountains. Established in 1978 as a nat ...
. At the northern end of the bridge, the Park Service operates a visitor center; it has scenic overlooks and a staircase that descends part of the way into the gorge.
A steel catwalk two feet (60 cm) wide runs the full length of the bridge underneath the roadway. Originally built to facilitate inspections, the catwalk is open for guided, handicapped-accessible quarter-mile "Bridge Walk" tours; visitors use safety rigging.
Since its opening, the bridge has been the centerpiece of Fayette County's " Bridge Day", held the third Saturday of every October.[ This festival includes demonstrations of ]rappelling
Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling the person descending controls their own movement down the rope, in contrast to low ...
, ascending, and BASE jumping. Bungee jumping
Bungee jumping (), also spelled bungy jumping, is an activity that involves a person jumping from a great height while connected to a large elastic cord. The launching pad is usually erected on a tall structure such as a building or crane, a ...
, however, has been banned during Bridge Day since 1993.
The bridge is closed to vehicular traffic during the festival. Prior to the September 11 terrorist attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
, two of the bridge's four lanes were open to traffic during the festivals. Since 2001, security concerns have caused the entire span to be closed to vehicles during these events.
The first person to jump off the New River Gorge Bridge was Burton Ervin, who lives in Cowen, West Virginia
Cowen is a town in Webster County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 488 at the 2020 census.
History
Cowen was named for a president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
Camp Caesar was listed on the National Register of Histor ...
, and was a coal-mine foreman. Burton jumped on August 1, 1979, using a conventional parachute
A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, w ...
. Four BASE jumpers have died at the bridge, three of these during Bridge Day festivals.[Complete Bridge Day History](_blank)
, My West Virginia Home website
Probably because of its height (and lack of barriers), the bridge has regularly attracted suicide jumpers.
Gallery
Image:West Virginia quarter, reverse side, 2005.jpg, The West Virginia state quarter, released in 2005, features the New River Gorge Bridge.
Image:NewRiverBridge West virginia.jpg, Bridge as seen from the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...
Visitors Center, with fog in the New River Gorge below
Image:NewRiverGorgeBridgeSpansWV.jpg, Close-up of the bridge supports
Image:New_River_Gorge_Bridge_walkway.jpg, Walkway to observation area near the Visitors Center
Image:NRGfromair.jpg, The New River Gorge Bridge as seen from a small fixed-wing airplane. The Tunney Hunsaker Bridge is also visible.
See also
* 50 State Quarters
*
* List of bridges in the United States by height
* List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia
* List of highest bridges
This list of highest bridges includes bridges with a deck height of at least . The of a bridge is the maximum vertical drop distance between the deck (bridge), bridge deck (the road, rail or other transport bed of a bridge) and the ground or wa ...
* List of suicide sites
The following is a list of current and historic sites frequently chosen to attempt suicide, usually by jumping. Some of the sites listed have installed suicide barriers, signs advising potential suicides to take other actions, and other precau ...
* Midland Trail, a nearby National Scenic Byway
A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Fayette County, West Virginia
* New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, the park surrounding the bridge
References and notes
External links
Bridge Day
(official site)
Bridge Day History
New River Gorge Bridge
at Bridges & Tunnels
at Roads to the Future
New River Gorge Bridge
at HighestBridges.com
*
*
{{Authority control
U.S. Route 19
Bridges completed in 1977
Transportation in Fayette County, West Virginia
Landmarks in West Virginia
Buildings and structures in Fayette County, West Virginia
Tourist attractions in Fayette County, West Virginia
Weathering steel
Historic American Engineering Record in West Virginia
Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System
Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia
National Register of Historic Places in Fayette County, West Virginia
Steel bridges in the United States
Truss arch bridges in the United States
National Register of Historic Places in New River Gorge National Park and Preserve