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The Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge
The Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge,
officially the Veterans Memorial Bridge, and once called the
Lancaster-York Inter-county Bridge, is a
reinforced concrete arch bridge that spans the Susquehanna River between
Columbia and Wrightsville, Pennsylvania. The Wiley-Maxon Construction
Company began building the bridge in 1929 and finished construction in
1930. The bridge was designed by James B. Long and is approximately 5,183
feet (1,580 m) long. It is believed to be the longest concrete arch bridge
in the world. The bridge is designated State Route 462 and is listed on
the National Register of Historic Places, and is also a Historic Civil
Engineering Landmark. It was constructed to replace the automobile traffic
of an adjacent older steel bridge, immediately north of the Veterans
Memorial Bridge. This earlier bridge jointly carried the tracks of the
Pennsylvania Railroad and a two-lane roadway for cars. In the early 1960s,
the railroad bridge was torn down. Its stone abutments date to even
earlier wooden covered bridges, one of which was destroyed by Union
militia during the American Civil War to prevent its usage by elements of
the Army of Northern Virginia. These earlier structures also went by the
name Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge.
The Burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge - American Civil War
By the summer of 1863, the American Civil War had been dragging for two
years. In the eastern USA, some of the most intense fighting took place in
Virginia, prompting Confederate leaders to seek an invasion of the North
to relieve the suffering in Virginia and 'bring the war' to the Union
states. To this end, the Southern army under the command of General Robert
E Lee marched north through the neutral state of Maryland and crossed the
Mason-Dixon line into Pennsylvania. In issuing his orders for the
Confederate invasion of Pennsylvania General Lee instructed General
Richard Ewell to capture the state capital of Harrisburg if it 'comes
within your means'. During the war, Harrisburg was a railway hub and one
of the main stop-over points for Union troops heading south. To capture
Harrisburg, Ewell sent a part of his force north towards Carlisle,
capturing the seat of Cumberland County without a fight on 27 June, 1863.
The Southerners then moved east toward the Susquehanna River and the
bridges across it which led into Harrisburg. At the same time, 2500
Confederate troops under the command of General John B Gordon were moving
to the south in York County, advancing on the small town of Wrightsville
to capture the wooden bridge across the Susquehanna River there. This
bridge was the only way over the river for 25 miles to the north or south
of Wrightsville. Opposing Gordon's battle-tested troops were about 250
local militia and volunteers in trenches around the western end of the
bridge. The Federal troops were ordered to prevent the Southerners from
gaining the bridge and were prepared to destroy it with explosives to
prevent its capture. The Confederates quickly moved in and easily
overwhelmed the defenders who fled across the bridge to the town of
Columbia, Lancaster County. And when the explosives failed to detonate,
the Union troops set fire to the bridge. It was a windy night and several
embers from the burning bridge blew back into the town of Wrightsville,
causing fires in the town itself which destroyed some homes and a lumber
yard. The invading Rebels, halted by the loss of the bridge, helped the
townspeople fight the fire by forming bucket brigades and working
shoulder-to-shoulder with the 'conquered' citizens. The Confederates then
left Wrightsville and headed west to rejoin Lee's army outside Gettysburg.
The stone piers which supported the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge
can still be seen standing in the river today from the Route 462 bridge.
Historical Significance
Obviously the mission to capture the vital bridge was a failure for the
Confederates. Some might argue that the burning of the
Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge was little more than sideshow leading up to
the main action at Gettysburg a few days later. However, it is important
to remember that the goal of the Confederate invasion of Pennsylvania was
to 'bring the war' to the North in the hopes that the Union populace would
sue for peace. With this vital bridge burned, the Susquehanna River
effectively barred the Confederates from advancing on the Pennsylvania
capital and the cities of Lancaster, Reading and Philadelphia. |
