{"id":561,"date":"2016-08-18T00:00:03","date_gmt":"2016-08-18T04:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/usparks\/?p=561"},"modified":"2016-08-17T15:41:28","modified_gmt":"2016-08-17T19:41:28","slug":"wheeling-national-heritage-area","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/usparks\/wheeling-national-heritage-area\/","title":{"rendered":"Wheeling National Heritage Area"},"content":{"rendered":"

P<\/span>ittsburgh is a city of bridges, but Wheeling, W.Va., has THE bridge.<\/p>\n

The 1,010-foot-long Wheeling Suspension Bridge over the Ohio River was the longest such single span bridge in the world when it was built in 1849, and it\u2019s the centerpiece of the National Park Service\u2019s Wheeling National Heritage Area.<\/p>\n

But the iconic architectural achievement is just as famous, maybe more so, for its height, or rather lack of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s road deck was just 90 feet above the normal river level and half of the steamboats couldn\u2019t fit under the bridge because of their smokestacks,\u201d said Bekah Karelis, the Wheeling heritage area\u2019s historian.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh industries and businesses were upset about the bottleneck, she said, and Pennsylvania, acting on the city\u2019s behalf, sued Wheeling for obstructing interstate commerce. The U.S. Supreme Court decided the case in favor of Pennsylvania in May 1852, giving the bridge owners 10 months to raise the bridge deck more than 20 feet, an impossible task, or tear it down.<\/p>\n

But three months later, after intense lobbying by Wheeling, Congress declared the bridge carrying U.S. Route 40 \u2014 the \u201cNational Road\u201d \u2014 a vital link to the West and an essential postal road entitled to special protection.<\/p>\n

But just two years after that legislative reprieve, the bridge, built by Charles Ellet Jr., whose design was selected over one by Brooklyn Bridge architect John Roebling, blew over in a violent wind storm. Pennsylvania filed another lawsuit opposing its reconstruction, but the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Wheeling.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bridge was rebuilt with the same [90-foot] clearance, and eventually the steamboats were fitted with hinged smokestacks that folded down and allowed passage up the river to Pittsburgh,\u201d Ms. Karelis said.<\/p>\n

\"Wheeling <\/a>
Wheeling Suspension Bridge, built in 1849. The 1,010-foot long bridge?was the first to span the Ohio River. It was blown over in a violent wind storm and rebuilt. It carries Route 40, the “National Road,” over the river. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wheeling <\/a>
Wheeling Suspension Bridge, built in 1849. The 1,010-foot long bridge was the first to span the Ohio River. It was blown over in a violent wind storm and rebuilt. It carries Route 40, the “National Road,” over the river. <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The North Centre Market House, built in 1853, is the oldest cast iron market still in existence in the U.S. Slaves were never sold at this market and during the Civil War, residents of the area were strongly supportive of the Union. <\/div> <\/div>
\"nps14-3\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Historical <\/a>
Historical sign noting the downtown historic district where more than 20 buildings and historic sites are part of a walking tour. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wheeling <\/a>
Wheeling Suspension Bridge, built in 1849. The 1,010-foot long bridge was the first to span the Ohio River. It was blown over in a violent wind storm and rebuilt. It carries Route 40, the “National Road,” over the river. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wheeling <\/a>
Wheeling National heritage Area historian Bekah Karelis, at the Mt. Wood Overlook in East Wheeling. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wheeling <\/a>
Wheeling Suspension Bridge, built in 1849. The 1,010-foot long bridge was the first to span the Ohio River. It was blown over in a violent wind storm and rebuilt. It carries Route 40, the “National Road,” over the river. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Statute <\/a>
Statute of Francis Pierpont, known as the “Father of West Virginia,” outside the state’s Independence Hall. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

It\u2019s the kind of quirky historical tale that seems to abound in Wheeling and gives its history a pulse the heritage area, established in 2000, has tried to amplify and promote.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople relate to stories. If we\u2019re just offering statues and a streetscape they can\u2019t relate,\u201d Ms. Karelis said. \u201cThe stories are what they remember \u2014 the juicier the better. Stories about wars and conflicts and scandals and statehood. We\u2019ve got our share.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Wheeling National Heritage Area<\/h2>\n

1400 Main Street, Wheeling, WV 26003<\/p>\n

304-232-3087<\/p>\n

Official website<\/a><\/p>\n