Fish Creek - 1881
The ca. 1881 Fish Creek Covered Bridge was built near Hundred, Wetzel County, West Virginia. This kingpost truss bridge spans only 36 feet. It is the last remaining covered bridge in Wetzel County and one of two remaining single kingpost truss bridges in West Virginia. Prior to 1981, the bridge was structurally reinforced with six 8x12 wide-flange steel beams replacing wood stringers. The bridge is enclosed with painted wood siding and a galvanized metal roof.
Located on Wetzel County 13 near Hundred, this kingpost truss is 12.75 feet wide and 36 feet long and still carrying traffic. Few details of its 1880 or 1881 construction are known. Lone Pine Construction, Inc. of Bentleyville, PA completed the renovation of the bridge in 2001 for $218,409. This reconstruction salvaged only four timber beams and the stone abutments upon which the bridge was originally built. The Fish Creek Covered Bridge is owned by the West Virginia Department of Transportation and remains in operation.
These braces, along with the stone abutments, are the only original components of the bridge that still exist. The bridge is of historical design, although the structure itself is essentially a twenty-first-century bridge.
The 1881 bridge was replaced by another covered bridge in 2001.
Length of largest span: 32.2 ft.
Total length: 35.1 ft.
Deck width: 11.5 ft.
Located at: N39 40.354 W80 27.134 - WGCB #48-52-01 #2
Photographed in September 2021