Casselman Bridge

39°41′48″N 79°08′37″W / 39.69667°N 79.14361°W / 39.69667; -79.14361^[1]Area4 acres (1.6 ha)^[2]Elevation2,113 ft (644 m)^[1]DesignationMaryland state parkEstablished1957AdministratorMaryland Department of Natural ResourcesWebsiteCasselman River Bridge State Park LocationEast of Grantsville on U.S. Route 40 Alternate, Grantsville, MarylandArea< 1 acreBuilt1813-1814ArchitectDavid Shriver Jr.^[3]NRHP reference No.66000391Significant datesAdded to NRHPOctober 15, 1966Designated NHLJanuary 29, 1964

The Casselman Bridge is a historic transportation structure on the Casselman River, located immediately east of Grantsville in Garrett County, Maryland.^[4] The bridge was built in 1813-1814 as part of the National Road. Historic markers posted at each end read:

Erected 1813 by David Shriver Jr.,
Sup't of the "Cumberland Road" (The
National Road). This 80 foot span
was the largest stone arch in America
at the time. It was continuously
used from 1813 to 1933.^[5]

Since 1957, the structure, which has also been known as Casselmans Bridge, Castleman's Bridge, and Little Crossings Bridge, has been preserved by the state of Maryland as Casselman River Bridge State Park.^[6] The bridge was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964,^[7] and placed on the National Historic Register in 1966.^[8]

The 354-foot-long (108 m) stone arch bridge spans 80 feet (24 m) with a 30-foot-high (9.1 m) arch and a roadway width of 48 feet (15 m).^[9][10] The bridge was constructed in 1813–1814 to aid in the westward movement through the frontier wilderness west of Cumberland, Maryland. The first wheeled vehicles crossed the bridge in 1815.^[11] As a "tidal wave" of western expansion followed the opening of the National Road, Casselman Bridge had heavy traffic that included 10-ton loads drawn by 12-horse teams.^[8] A small portion of the original National Road still exists at the approaches to the bridge.^[9]

The bridge was strengthened for motorized traffic in 1911 and continued in service as a highway until 1933, when a modern steel span was built nearby to serve what is now US Route 40 Alternate.^[11] In the 1940s and early 1950s, efforts were made to preserve the bridge when sections started to crumble and fall apart. The bridge was closed to vehicles in 1953^[12] and partially restored by the state in the mid-1950s.^[10] Additional maintenance occurred in 1979, 1996, 2002, and 2012.^[13]

In addition to walking over the historic bridge, the state park offers picnicking facilities and fishing in Casselman River. Historic structures to the east of the park include Stanton's Mill, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places,^[4] and the restored log cabin craft shops of Spruce Forest Artisan Village.

• 
  Bridge in 2014

• Buckel's Bog
• Maryland bridges documented on the Historic American Engineering Record
• Maryland bridges on the National Register of Historic Places
• List of National Historic Landmarks in Maryland
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Garrett County, Maryland

Federal

National battlefields	Antietam Monocacy
National historical parks	Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad
National historic sites	Clara Barton Hampton Thomas Stone
National monuments	Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine
National seashores	Assateague Island
National Park Service parks	Catoctin Mountain Fort Foote Fort Washington Glen Echo Greenbelt Harmony Hall Oxon Cove and Oxon Hill Farm Piscataway
National wildlife refuges	Blackwater Eastern Neck Glenn Martin Patuxent Research Susquehanna River
National historic and scenic trails	Appalachian Captain John Smith Chesapeake Potomac Heritage Star-Spangled Banner
Other protected areas	Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

State

State parks	Assateague Big Run Bill Burton Fishing Pier Calvert Cliffs Canal Place Casselman River Bridge Chapel Point Cunningham Falls Dans Mountain Deep Creek Lake Elk Neck Fort Frederick Fort Tonoloway Gambrill Gathland Greenbrier Greenwell Gunpowder Falls Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Hart-Miller Island Herrington Manor Janes Island Martinak Matapeake New Germany North Point Palmer Patapsco Valley Patuxent River Pocomoke River Point Lookout Purse Rocks Rocky Gap Rosaryville Sandy Point Seneca Creek Smallwood South Mountain St. Clement's Island St. Mary's River Susquehanna Swallow Falls Tuckahoe Washington Monument Wye Oak
State forests	Cedarville Chesapeake Doncaster Elk Neck Garrett Green Ridge Mount Nebo Pocomoke Potomac Savage River Seth Stoney Wicomico
Wildlife management areas	Avondale Belle Grove Billmeyer Bodkin Island Bowen Cedar Island Cedar Point Cheltenham Chicamuxen Chicone Creek Cunningham Swamp Dan's Mountain Deal Island Devil Island Area Dierssen E.A. Vaughn Earleville Ellis Bay Fairmount Fishing Bay Fort Hill Globe Com Gravel Hill Swamp Grove Farm Gwynnbrook Heater's Island Hopkins Branch Hugg-Thomas Idylwild Indian Springs Islands of the Potomac Isle of Wight Johnson Kent Island Research Center Le Compte Linkwood Little Patuxent Oxbow Maryland Marine Properties McIntosh Run McKee-Beshers Millington Mt. Nebo Myrtle Grove Nanjemoy Nanjemoy Creek Nanticoke River Old Bohemia Parker's Creek Pocomoke River Pocomoke Sound Prather's Neck Ridenour Swamp Riverside Sideling Hill Sinepuxent Bay South Marsh Island Strider Tar Bay Taylors Island Warrior Mountain Wellington Wetipquin
Natural environment areas	Belt Woods Mattawoman Morgan Run Severn Run Soldiers Delight Youghiogheny Scenic & Wild River Zekiah Swamp

County and
municipal

Parks and sanctuaries

Acorn Allen Pond Belmont Benjamin Banneker Blandair Carroll Centennial Clifton Constitution Cromwell Valley Cylburn Arboretum David Force Dinosaur Druid Hill Fairgrounds Falls Road Federal Hill Flag Ponds Fort Smallwood Foxhill Gene Mason Generals Gwynn Oak Gwynns Falls/Leakin Hagerstown City Herring Run Jefferson Patterson Jonas Green Jug Bay Wetlands Kinder Farm Lake Artemesia Lake Elkhorn Lake Kittamaqundi Lake Roland Lakelands Liberty Reservoir Loch Raven Middle Patuxent Oregon Ridge Patterson Pen Mar Prettyboy Reservoir Quiet Waters Riverside Rockburn Branch Sligo Creek Symphony Woods Thomas A. Dixon Jr. Aircraft Observation Area Troy Wheaton Wilde Lake Wyman

Non-
governmental

Parks and sanctuaries	Battle Creek Cypress Swamp Conservation and Environmental Research Areas of UMBC Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary and Visitor's Center Mount Pleasant Farm Center Sherwood Gardens Somers Cove Marina Sugarloaf Mountain University of Maryland Arboretum & Botanical Garden Western Maryland Rail Trail Youghiogheny Scenic & Wild River
Nature centers	List