Washington County, MD Snippets

The Old Conococheague Bridge at Wilson

From The turnpikes of New England and evolution of the same through England... By Frederic James Wood"

At the December session of 1816 a corporation was created under the name of Hagerstown and Conococheague Turnpike Company with power to build from " The Market Space in Hagerstown to the west bank of Conococheague." This was the corporation which Governor Goldsborough reported in 1818 had built a bridge over Big Conococheague and a turnpike thence to Hagerstown, but the governor evidently anticipated the completion of the bridge, for according to a tablet inserted in the parapet wall, it was built by Silas Harry in 1819.

The Big Conococheague bridge is crossed about halfway from Hagerstown to Clear Spring and is an imposing structure of five arches, which must have cost at least seventy-five, thousand dollars by comparison with that over the Monocasy, which was built at an expense of fifty-six thousand. At its westerly end the road makes a most abrupt turn, almost square, to the left, and many serious accidents have occurred there since the old road has seen the high speed of automobiles.

A new road alignment and bridge, built in 1937, signaled the end of the old bridge's 118 year history of serving travelers on the National Road. Hurricane Agnes, in 1982, completely submerged the old bridge and did extensive damage. The County government was going to tear down the remaining structure but the citizens of Washington County rallied to raise the funds to restore the bridge.