The Point Pleasant Kanauga Railroad Bridge spans the Ohio River, connecting Point Pleasant, West Virginia with the unincorporated community Kanauga, Ohio.
At 3,925 feet, it was one of the longest bridges of its kind when it was first constructed in the late nineteenth century. If I understand correctly, this is the second bridge in this spot. It’s a sight to behold.
There’s a river walk that goes right under the bridge so I was able to get a good look at it Saturday. I bet the riverwalk provides an incredible view of trains traveling through.
Incidentally, this bridge played an important role following the collapse of the Silver Bridge in 1967. This catastrophic accident left the river full of cars and debris, claiming the lives of 46 people. The K&M Railroad provided passenger rail service across this bridge for an affordable fee. This service was discontinued when the new Silver Memorial Bridge opened in 1969.
Here’s one more view.
Make the Journey Fun 
What a neat looking bridge. I like that there’s even a path that goes underneath for a closer look.
That’s a really nice walking path and there are some pretty murals to enjoy part of the way. I’ll talk about that another day soon. But the bridge kind of makes me swoon. It’s just so cool.
As a kid, living first in Point Pleasant and then in Gallipolis, we crossed the Silver Bridge MANY times. I remember looking at the railroad bridge then, thinking how neat it was. And still is. Nice photos of the old bridge….the blue sky really sets it off.
I didn’t know you lived down there! It’s a pretty area and both towns have neat downtown areas to enjoy. And yes! The bridge looked even nicer against that pretty sky.
That’s a special bridge. How horrible about the collapsed bridge. And we’re neglecting infrastructure in the country to the point we can expect to start seeing that sort of thing happening again.
The Silver Bridge transformed bridge safety standards in this country but you are absolutely right. We are neglecting infrastructure at a rate that we are teetering on the edge of catastrophe nationwide. It’s terrifying.