Description: This color image shows the S-Bridge in Muskingum County, outside of New Concord, Ohio. The S-bridges were single-arch stone bridges, which crossed small, curving streams with uneven banks. Here the road over the bridge merges with a four-lane highway (U.S. 40). This bridge is known by several names: Fox Run S-Bridge; Fox Creek S-Bridge, and S-Bridge II. S-Bridges were a type of bridge used on the National Road, one of the first paved (gravel) roads to cross the Appalachian Mountains. The United States Congress authorized construction of the road in 1806. In 1811 the Congress awarded contracts to private builders to construct the road. The War of 1812 prevented construction from beginning until 1815. Construction began in Cumberland, Maryland, and the contractors completed the road to Wheeling, Virginia (modern-day West Virginia), in 1817. Eventually, the federal government extended the road to near St. Louis, Missouri. Construction of the National Road occurred in Ohio from 1825 to 1838. In 1926 the National Road became part of U.S. 40. The S-Bridge, when viewed from above, resembles the letter "S." Workers made the bridges out of cut stone, which proved to be a more durable material than wood. The reason for the unusual shape was to make construction easier for the workers. When the National Road crossed a creek or stream at an angle, the workers built the bridge's supporting arches at a right angle to the stream. This process allowed water to flow through the arches more easily and also allowed workers easier access to build the bridges from each side of a creek or stream. Some people claim that the S-Bridges were designed to stop runaway horses, but there is no supporting evidence for this claim. A total of five S-Bridges existed along the National Road in Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06952
Subjects: Bridges--Ohio; National Road; Muskingum County (Ohio); New Concord (Ohio)
Places: New Concord (Ohio); Muskingum County (Ohio)
 

Description: The S-Bridge and Ohio Historical Marker for the S-Bridge in Muskingum County. It is like many others on the National Road. The historical marker reads "Coaches, Conestoga wagons, herds of livestock, pioneers on foot or horseback, peddlers, soldiers, beggars - these and many have crossed this bridge on the National Road since 1830. Like many others on the road, the bridge was built with well-cut stone and good mortar in the shape of an "S" because it was easier to erect than one thrown straight across an oblique stream." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06877
Subjects: Bridges--Ohio; Muskingum County (Ohio); New Concord (Ohio)
Places: New Concord (Ohio); Muskingum County (Ohio)
 

Description: Muskingum College, from "Historical Collections of Ohio" by Henry Howe, 1847. In 1837, the Presbyterian Church founded Muskingum College at New Concord, Ohio. It was one of the first coeducational institutions of higher education in the United States. The institution has operated continuously since the 1830s, boasting an enrollment of 1,550 students in 2002. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04014
Subjects: New Concord (Ohio); Cultural Ohio--Education; Art, American--Ohio; Universities and colleges
Places: New Concord (Ohio); Muskingum County (Ohio)