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Valley Railroad Bridge

Salem, US

Valley Railroad Bridge

Valley Railroad Bridge or Gish Branch Bridge is a historic limestone arch bridge located over Gish Branch at Salem, Virginia. It was built in 1873 by the firm of Claiborne Rice (C.R.) Mason, under the local guidance of Thomas Menifee, engineer and employee of Mason. Mason was head of a syndicate hop

ing to link major railways of the north and south at Salem, Virginia - specifically by linking the Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, two of the major railways of the era. Menifee and the other members of the Mason Syndicate began work on May 20, 1873. By late November 1874, the roadbed had been brought to grade from the Botetourt county line to the outskirts of Salem just south of Gish Branch, named for its crossing the homestead of farmer John Abraham Gish, one of the many German settlers in the region. All but the major stream crossings (Carvins, Peters, and Mason Creeks) were complete, awaiting additional funding. However, the September 1873 national financial panic and the resulting depression led the Mason Syndicate to abandon the Salem and Lexington connection. Today, the Gish Branch Bridge is an important part of the Roanoke Valley's railroad...

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