Sunday, August 31, 2008

DAY 49 - Zanesville's Y-Bridge





GO THE MIDDLE OF THE BRIDGE AND TURN RIGHT. . . . OR LEFT. . .


Here in Zanesville, it does work, and you don't get wet. The Y-Bridge spans the confluence of the Muskingum and Licking Rivers. The Licking flows into the Muskingum here; the Muskingum flows on south and ends in Marietta in the Ohio River.





The first Zanesville Y-Bridge was constructed in 1814. Several iterations (some of them wooden covered bridges) were washed away by serious floods before the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed a series of dams and locks that now regulate the flow of the two rivers. The current concrete and steel bridge is the fifth in the series on the same location. It opened in 1984.





The Y-Bridge has been an aviation landmark for many years. Amelia Earhart was quoted as saying “Zanesville is the easiest recognized city from the air because of the Y- Bridge.”




Putnam Hill Park offers the best views of the bridge and the surrounding city. We couldn't have picked a more gorgeous day for our visit there.





Here's an aerial shot from wikimapia:











5 comments:

Fashion Schlub said...

Interesting. I wonder why the Licking River was named that...?

Z-ville said...

I did a little research (google is a wonderful thing!) and found this:

Licking County got its name because it had salt licks that deer were attracted to.

The Licking River is mostly in Licking County, so that's a plausible explanation.

Kat Simpson said...

That is very cool. I've never seen or read about this neat bridge. Great photos and thanks for sharing.

Iris said...

You have such interesting things there - your bridge, all those hugh strange and lovely vases, the huge basket....

I'm so enjoying the 365 day visits to other parts of the country.

365DAYSINHEMETVALLEY said...

I have never heard of such a thing --- it's a beautiful bridge.