"S" Bridge
Why it's listed
Spanning a branch of Buffalo Creek in Washington County, Pennsylvania, the S Bridge is a stone arch structure about 45 feet wide and 130 feet long. It was built to carry the National Road, the National Pike, which was basically finished in 1818. The road was conceived earlier under George Washington, and Albert Gallatin later pressed for its extension through the county while serving as Secretary of the Treasury under Jefferson. Pennsylvania did not officially open the road until 1835. Its builders used random and regular coursed ashlar and rubble masonry, with a dressed cope stone along the top and an arch of equal skewed voussoirs. The west end was demolished when Route 40 was built, but the surviving section remains in good condition. Taverns were operated at both ends of the bridge during the road's busiest years, and a post office once served the surrounding community. The bridge is now bypassed by U.S. 40 and sits in a roadside park.
Significance in brief: The bridge is associated with the National Pike, described as the greatest American road project of the 19th century, which was finished in 1818 and opened officially by Pennsylvania in 1835. The nomination ties the road to Washington County's commerce and communication between East and West, and to the taverns and inns that served its stagecoaches and wagon trains. Its masonry construction is the basis for its engineering and transportation significance.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 75001676, listed April 4, 1975. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 6 mi. W of Washington on U.S. 40, Washington |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | April 4, 1975 |
| Reference number | 75001676 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1818 |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Surviving part in good condition; no longer in use since the relocation of U.S. 40, and now a roadside park where pedestrians may still walk over it. |
| Acreage | 1 |
| Coordinates | 40.13951, -80.34979 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 75001676.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q1099245
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.