Potomac Creek Bridge - Civil War Discovery Trail Sites on Waymarking.com

During the first year of the Civil War, Potomac Creek Bridge, originally built in 1842 by the Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad, was used by Confederate troops as a supply line to their encampments along the Potomac River. In spring of 1862, they abandoned the site and destroyed the bridge.

In May, under the supervision of Herman Haupt, Union forces rebuilt the bridge in 9 days. They had harvested two million feet of lumber and built a span 400' long and 80' high. On May 28, 1862, during a visit to the bridge, President Abraham Lincoln said:

"I have seen the most remarkable structure that human eyes ever rested upon. That man Haupt has built a bridge across Potomac Creek, about 400 feet long and nearly 100 feet high, over which loaded trains are running every hour, and, upon my word, gentlemen, there is nothing in it but beanpoles and cornstalks."

The bridge built by Haupt stood until the summer of 1863. Over the remaining years of the War, it was rebuilt by the Union army 4 times using the same abutment. In 1899, the railroad and bridge were shifted to their present-day location and the abutment was abandoned.

Today, only the abutment and a few pieces of the 'beanpoles and cornstalks' bridge remain. A paved road now runs where the rail once did.

Type of site: Transportation Route or Facility Address: Leland Rd Stafford, VA USA Admission Charged: No Charge Website: [Web Link] Phone Number: Not listed Driving Directions: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   05/14/2019 ORDIMIC visited it