Near Lansing in Fayette County, West Virginia — The American South (Appalachia)
A Vital Link
Fayette Station Bridge
— New River Gorge National River —
Photographed By J. J. Prats, July 25, 2021
1. A Vital Link Marker
The bridge you are standing on is a reconstruction of the original Fayette Station Bridge. On November 8, 1998, it was dedicated to Tunney Hunsaker, a local celebrity. Before the New River Gorge Bridge was built in 1977, the Fayette Station Road was the main artery connecting the gorge.
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Tunney Hunsaker, a Fayette resident, fought Muhammad Ali in Ali’s first professional boxing match. Afterwards Hunsaker said, “Clay was as fast as lighting ... I tried every trick I knew to throw him off balance but he was just too good.” The two remained friends.
Erected by U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Bridges & Viaducts. A significant historical year for this entry is 1889.
Location. 38° 3.887′ N, 81° 4.623′ W. Marker is near Lansing, West Virginia, in Fayette County. Marker is on Fayette Station Road (County Route 82) 2.7 miles south of the Canyon Rim Visitor Center, on the right when traveling south. This section of road and the bridge
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A Tale of Two Towns (here, next to this marker); Working In a Coal Mine (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Right for Safety and Equality (about 700 feet away); A Trip Back In Time (about 800 feet away); Natural Renewal (approx. 0.2 miles away); Townsend’s Ferry (approx. 0.2 miles away); Enduring Beauty (approx. 0.2 miles away); Growth of an Era (approx. 0.3 miles away).
More about this marker. This interpretive panel is illustrated with a color photograph of the bridge showing its relation to the river, and a small photograph by Steve Keenan of the Fayette Tribune captioned “a reunion between Hunsaker (pictured left) and Ali, 30 years after the match.”
Regarding A Vital Link. Wikipedia: The Tunney Hunsaker Bridge (also known as the Fayette Station Bridge) is an historic truss bridge over the New River in New River Gorge, West Virginia. The bridge is named after Tunney Hunsaker, American boxer and former chief-of-police at Fayetteville, West Virginia.
The bridge is a single-lane truss bridge consisting of one main span (279 ft. long)
Photographed By J. J. Prats, July 25, 2021
2. Two markers on the Fayette Station Bridge
This marker is the far one on the right.
Construction of the bridge was completed in 1889 by the Virginia Bridge and Iron Company of Roanoke, Virginia. When the New River Gorge Bridge opened in 1977, the bridge, in a deteriorated state, was closed to traffic, and was rehabilitated and reopened in 1997.
Photographed By J. J. Prats, July 25, 2021
3. Reconstructed Fayette Station Bridge, now the Tunney Hunsaker Bridge
Bridge crosses the New River near the bottom of the gorge, at the level of the railroad tracks that parallel the river on either side.
Photographed By J. J. Prats, May 14, 2023
4. Its Replacement, the New River Gorge Bridge
This view is looking north from this marker, which is located on the Fayette Station Bridge, now called the Tunney Hunsaker Bridge.
Credits. This page was last revised on May 21, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 13, 2021, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 150 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 13, 2021, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. 4. submitted on May 21, 2023, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.
