The historic bridge over Wheeling Creek at Main Street between Downtown and Center Wheeling was damaged in a motor vehicle accident in 2022. Officials from the West Virginia Division of Highways said they are still working on getting the historic span repaired. (Photos by Eric Ayres)

WHEELING – The West Virginia Division of Highways is still working to obtain stone sections that will help maintain the historic character of the Main Street Bridge in Wheeling before repairs move forward.

In the summer of 2022, a high-speed, single-vehicle accident on Main Street in downtown Wheeling occurred on the 132-year-old bridge. The tragic crash claimed the lives of both occupants of the vehicle, broke a utility pole and took out a section of a stone guard wall along the north side of the bridge adjacent to the sidewalk.

Since then, concrete barriers have remained in place to keep pedestrians on the bridge away from the broken section of the bridge over Wheeling Creek.

Soon after the accident occurred, WVDOH used a crane to recover some stones that fell from the top of the bridge as a result of the crash. Officials from the DOH said they hoped to reuse as many of the recovered stones as possible to repair the bridge’s side wall. Officials noted that the rest of the bridge remained undamaged.

It’s been over two years since the broken stone sections were recovered from the bottom of Wheeling Creek. Officials from the WVDOH recently said efforts are still being made to match new stone to the stone sections on the historic span before repairs are made.

The historic bridge over Wheeling Creek at Main Street between Downtown and Center Wheeling was damaged in a motor vehicle accident in 2022. Officials from the West Virginia Division of Highways said they are still working on getting the historic span repaired. (Photos by Eric Ayres)

“The DOH recovered what it could and are still missing usable stones,” Jake Flatley, Transportation Public Information Specialist for the WVDOH, said.

A plaque on the bridge – not far from the gouge in its side wall – states that the span was constructed from 1890-92 and lists the officials involved in the bridge’s construction at the time.

Several historic bridges in the Wheeling area – from the iconic Wheeling Suspension Bridge to the stone arch Monument Place Bridge in Elm Grove, the state’s oldest bridge – have undergone multimillion-dollar restorations by the WVDOH in recent years. In speaking with WVDOH District 6 engineers, Flatley said state officials are taking great efforts to make sure the character of the Main Street Bridge – like the other historic spans in the city – is maintained through its repair.

“This is another historic structure,” Flatley said. “After the accident and review of what was needed to repair the damage in a historic manner, WVDOH searched for stones with the same characteristics.”

A plaque on the historic Main Street Bridge across Wheeling Creek lists the names of officials at the time who were involved in its construction back in 1890-92. (Photos by Eric Ayres)

The search for matching stones actually led state officials to the source of the original material from back when the bridge was constructed, Flatley indicated.

“WVDOH found the original supplier or quarry that provided the stones,” he said. “WVDOH is still inquiring about the purchase of the cut stones.”

Although no time table has been announced, the repair to the damaged wall on the bridge is expected to take place after the right materials are secured for the historic structure.

The historic bridge over Wheeling Creek at Main Street between Downtown and Center Wheeling was damaged in a motor vehicle accident in 2022. Officials from the West Virginia Division of Highways said they are still working on getting the historic span repaired. (Photos by Eric Ayres)