1855-1871 Planning A City For A Railroad

1855-1871 Planning A City For A Railroad. Great Stone Viaduct Park. , 1855- A plan map was drawn for routing the railroad through Bellaire Ohio utilizing a crescent- shaped circuit and switch-backs to a ferry landing on the Ohio River. Train cars had to be loaded on ferry boats to cross the Ohio River, then unloaded Ain Benwood, West Virginia. This is how troups and supplies were moved during the Civil War. The 1855 map is overlayed in white over a current aerial photo of Bellaire., 1871- The Great Stone Viaduct is completed with 43 sandstone arches to allow train traffic to cross the Ohio River unimpeded. As a result, Bellaire became a vibrant industrial, commercial and cultural center in the Ohio Valley. Passengers would embark on an elevated platform on the east side of Union Street. Much of the Great Stone Viaduct is still in use today with trains traveling East on 22 stone arches to pass over the Ohio River and West and North on a steel trestle built around 1910., Great Stone Viaduct Park , Property acquired by the Great Stone Viaduct Historical Education Society, a 501-c3 non-profit educational organization with public and private donations is highlighted in YELLOW. Preservation and development included extensive cleaning, pointing and repairs of the existing stone structure and construction of walking/bike trail with an elevated walkway and observation deck on 21 of the original stone arches. A walking plaza surrounds the base of the arches.