{"nrhp_refnum":"78002153","name":"Dresden Suspension Bridge","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"OH 208 and OH 666","address_restricted":false,"city":"Dresden","county":"Muskingum County","state":"OH","lat":40.12056073300005,"lon":-82.00018116299998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-12-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 705-foot suspension bridge carrying State Routes 208 and 666 over the Muskingum River at the eastern edge of Dresden, Muskingum County, Ohio. It was built in 1914 on the site of an 1853 suspension bridge.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is significant as an engineering structure that has served the transportation needs of the upper Muskingum River area since it was erected. It replaced an 1853 bridge, described as the oldest suspension bridge west of the Alleghenies, that was wrecked in the 1913 flood. It remains part of the valley's engineering heritage.","narrative":"Spanning the Muskingum River at the eastern edge of Dresden, this suspension bridge carries State Routes 208 and 666 across three spans totaling 705 feet. Two steel towers, each 68.5 feet high, support eye-bar cables that hold up a Warren pony truss and a 20-foot-wide roadway. The original latticework guard railings survive. The bridge was built in 1914 after a major flood in the spring of 1913 destroyed an earlier suspension bridge on the same site, erected in 1853 and described as the oldest suspension bridge west of the Alleghenies. Muskingum County Commissioners let the contracts. J.A. Swingle of Zanesville built the substructure, and the Bellefontaine Bridge and Steel Co. of Bellefontaine, Ohio, built the superstructure. It was listed for its engineering significance and its long role in the transportation network of the upper Muskingum Valley. It is owned by the State of Ohio and remains in use.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Bellefontaine Bridge & Steel Co. (superstructure); J.A. Swingle Construction Co. (substructure)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as occupied and in public ownership (State of Ohio); condition marked good and altered; open to the public without restriction; used for transportation.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:12.449091-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/78002153.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002153/2c78f4b6c1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002153/2c78f4b6c1-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Elliott, Joseph, creator","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PERSPECTIVE_VIEW_LOOKING_SOUTHWEST_-_Dresden_Suspension_Bridge,_Spanning_Muskingum_River_on_State_Route_208,_Dresden,_Muskingum_County,_OH_HAER_OHIO,60-DRES,1-2.tif\" rel=\"noopener\">Elliott, Joseph, creator</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PERSPECTIVE_VIEW_LOOKING_SOUTHWEST_-_Dresden_Suspension_Bridge,_Spanning_Muskingum_River_on_State_Route_208,_Dresden,_Muskingum_County,_OH_HAER_OHIO,60-DRES,1-2.tif"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990775","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q114064305"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/muskingum-county/dresden-suspension-bridge-78002153/"}