1924 Wil-Cox Bridge Opening Photos

Earlier this month, I brought over the feature I did on the Wil-Cox Bridge on the old website to the blog. The seven arch concrete open-spandrel bridge opened in 1924 and was a key piece of the Central Highway. Recently, Ben Thurkill sent along a handful of photos from the bridge's 1924 opening. The five photos below are part of the NCDOT archives.

Today, the Wil-Cox Bridge is slowly becoming a center piece for a regional park. In August 2015, Davidson County Commissioners agreed to take over the bridge from the state. The state transferred the $2.5 million that would have been used to demolish the historic bridge to the county. Those funds are being used for bridge preservation and future development of the regional park. In 2016, Davidson County purchased nearly 14 nearby acres that included Fort York, a Confederate Fort built in the waning years of the Civil War. Davidson County intends on unveiling a master plan for the Wil-Cox Bridge, Fort York, and the regional park early in 2017.

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Former California State Route 198 at the bottom of Lake Kaweah

East of Lemon Cove of Tulare County one can find several old alignments of California State Route 198 at the bottom of the Lake Kaweah Reservoir. In particularly dry years these early alignments of California State Route 198 can be accessed as hiking trails. Part 1; a brief history of California State Route 198 in the Lake Kaweah Reservoir The current corridor of California State Route 198 ("CA 198") in Lake Kaweah has a lengthy history. The present corridor around Lake Kaweah first became a popular route of travel for European settlers during the mining boom of Mineral King Valley. Through the 1860s prospectors arrived in Mineral King Valley by way of the Kaweah River and East Fork Kaweah River. In 1870 John Lovelace and his family built a stock trail up to what was known as Milk Ranch on the East Fork Kaweah River. The Lovelace extended their trail all the way up to Mineral King Valley and the prospector camp sites. In 1871 the stock trail was greatly improved

New River Gorge National River Area To Become A National Park

Great news for those that enjoy National Parks, West Virginia's New River Gorge Region, or West Virginia tourism. Included within the Fiscal Year 2021 Omnibus Appropriations Bill signed by President Trump last night (December 27th) is the New River Gorge Park and Preserve Designation Act. The act will designate the existing New River National River and over 72,000 acres of land within it as a National Park and Preserve. The New River Gorge Bridge will continue to be the centerpiece of the new New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. (Adam Prince, 2007) The river and surrounding land, which was added to the National Park System in 1978, will be our 63rd National Park. The designation preserves over 7,000 acres as a National Park. This area will not allow any hunting. The remaining 65,000 acres of the existing park will be designated as a preserve allowing hunting and fishing. The main attractions to the New River Gorge - whitewater rafting, camping, hiking, mountain bikin

The Great PA 48 Clearance Sale

It's not often that any department of transportation sells land it purchased. They are usually in the business of acquiring land for right-of-way. But in 1982, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation did exactly that. Offering to buyers land it purchased just 15 years earlier for the never-built Route 48 Expressway. Background: The sale was a result of the 1970s cash crunch the PennDOT experienced. Many projects were cut back, shelved, or eliminated. The 'New 48', or the North-South Parkway, which was touted for nearly 20 years as a connection from the industrial Mon Valley to the Turnpike and Monroeville was one of the casualties. In the mid-late 1960s, movement to construct the new highway began with targeting a two-mile stretch of highway from the Route 48 intersection at Lincoln Way in White Oak to US 30 in North Versailles. The plan was then to continue the highway northwards to Monroeville. Extension south across the Youghiogheny River and to PA 51 would

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