Short Route Bridge (Hi Carpenter Bridge)

Short Route Bridge (Hi Carpenter Bridge). . , In 1927 Hiram A. Carpenter, a well-known ferry business owner in Pleasants County, West Virginia, was witnessing the increase of automobile ownership in the early 1900's, and through this phenomena, commerce was increasing as well. Being the visionary that he was, Hiram felt if a bridge were to be built in St. Marys it would allow for a greater increase in commerce in the region with virtually unlimited access into both Ohio and West Virginia. In order to get a new bridge built, Hiram formed the Clarksburg-Columbus Short Route Bridge Company. The company was responsible for securing the financing, obtaining the State approvals, hiring a bridge designer, and contractors to build the new bridge. J.E. Greiner Company of Baltimore, Maryland, a bridge design engineering company and firm that designed the Silver Bridge at Pt. Pleasant, West Virginia, was hired to draft plans for the construction of the new bridge. The new bridge at St. Marys would be named the "Short Route Bridge” and was nearly identical to the Silver Bridge. , The original design of the Silver Bridge had called for the use of wire cables for the suspension support; however, eyebar members were included as a bid alternate. When the construction bids were received the eyebar members came in at a lower price than the wire cables, and were ultimately chosen for the suspension support. This would be the first time eyebars would be used for the suspension support of a bridge in the United States. The second bridge in the United States to be constructed in this manner would be the Short Route Bridge. , In November of 1927 construction began on the Short Route Bridge and was completed on October 25, 1928. The State of West Virginia purchased the bridge in 1937 and removed the toll on it in 1946. On September 16, 1967 the Short Route Bridge was renamed to the "Hi Carpenter Bridge” in honor of Hiram Carpenter. , On the evening of December 15, 1967, the Silver Bridge collapsed killing 46 people. The cause of the collapse was attributed to the failure of one of the eyebars. Further investigations determined the failed eyebar had developed a small crack and grew through internal corrosion, a problem known as stress corrosion cracking. Ultimately, the use of eyebars in the design of the bridge did not provide enough redundancy for the structural support. It was a case of the bridge only being as strong as its weakest link, and in this case, it was the one failed eyebar. , Because of the similarity in design and construction with eyebars, the Hi Carpenter Bridge was temporarily closed on December 18, 1967 by the West Virginia Department of Highways and then permanently closed on June 18, 1969. The bridge did not re-open due to the possibility of stress corrosion cracking existing in the Hi Carpenter Bridge, the same corrosion that contributed to the collapse of the Silver Bridge. This type of flaw could not be detected by any inspection method known at that time without disassembly of the eyebar joints. , On June 29, 1971 all of the Hi Carpenter Bridge was demolished with the exception of the truss span over the thoroughfare that served as the approach to St. Marys, and the ramp bridge that provides access to Middle Island. In 2017, this truss span was rehabilitated and the ramp bridge was replaced. The revitalized structure continues to provide access to the island below which has become a wildlife refuge, while maintaining a portion of the original bridge design.