Buchanan Swinging Suspension Footbridge
NBI Information
Location
State: Virginia
County: Botetourt County
Feature Carried: Pedestrian Path
Feature Crossed: James River
Latitude, Longitude: 37.5303,-79.6779
Toll: N/A
Maintenance Responsibility: N/A
Structure Open, Posted, or Closed to Traffic: Open to Pedestrians
History
Year Built: 1851
Historical Significance: N/A
Year Reconstructed: 1897
Picture Date: December 7, 2020
Geometry
Lanes on Structure: 0
Lanes under Structure: 0
Skew: 0 degrees
Number of Main Spans: 1
Main Structure Type: Suspension
Main Structure Material: Steel
Number of Approach Spans: 0
Approach Structure Type: None
Approach Structure Material: None
Condition
Bridge is not on the National Bridge Inventory.
Bridge Information
The Buchanan Swinging Suspension Footbridge is 366 feet long, 57.5 feet tall, and is the only one of its type to cross the James River.
The large stone piers were built in 1851 as part of a covered bridge on The Buchanan Turnpike Company’s Toll Bridge. These piers are still used by today. A toll of 5 cents per person was charged, with an additional 5 cents charged for each horse, mule, oxen, and wagon.
The covered bridge was burned by the Confederate troops on June 13, 1864 to prevent the Union troops from crossing the James River (the fire also burned nearly 30 buildings in the town of Buchanan). The bridge was rebuilt after the war, but the new structure washed away in 1877. At that time, the R&A Railroad Company rebuilt the bridge as a toll-free covered bridge.
In 1897, the covered bridge was replaced with the a steel bridge, which was used until 1938, when the current James River Bridge was opened. When construction was started on the new bridge, an agreement was made to maintain pedestrian access at the site. The current suspension bridge as constructed, and it opened on July 4, 1938.
References
Virginia.org: https://www.virginia.org/listing/buchanan-swinging-bridge/4994/
Town of Buchanan: https://www.buchanan-va.gov/visitors/page/buchanan-swinging-bridge
Visit Roanoke VA: https://www.visitroanokeva.com/blog/post/local-history-buchanan-swinging-bridge-botetourt-county-virginia/
