A Guide to the Danville (Va.) Worsham Street Bridge Records, 1927-2009
A Collection in
the Library of Virginia
Barcode number: 1203518
Library of Virginia
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Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
There are no restrictions.
Use Restrictions
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Preferred Citation
Danville (Va.) Worsham Street Bridge Records, 1927-2009. Local Government Records Collection, Danville (City) Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.
Acquisition Information
These items came to the Library of Virginia under accession number 44872.
The Worsham Street Bridge was recorded in January 2009 by the Louis Berger Group, Inc., Richmond, Virginia, for the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) pursuant to a Memorandum of Agreement among VDOT, the Norfolk District of the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Virginia SHPO, the City of Danville, and the Danville Historical Society (as a concurring party) concerning the demolition of the bridge. Recordation was performed in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Architectural and Engineering Documentation (Federal Register 48[190]:44730-44734; Federal Register 68[139]:43159-43162), and is consistent with Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) guidelines for historical reports.
Historical Information
In 1802, Thomas Worsham, a leading citizen of Danville, constructed a toll bridge over the Dan River. Known as the Worsham Street Bridge, it was rebuilt in 1928 by the Atlantic Bridge Company as a way to funnel traffic into Danville's tobacco warehouse district. In 2004, the bridge was closed to traffic and was demolished in 2009.
Danville, in Pittsylvania County, was named for the Dan River on which the city is located. Danville was established in 1793; it was incorporated as a town in 1830 and as a city in 1890.
Scope and Content
Danville (Va.) Worsham Street Bridge Records, 1927-2009, consist of blueprints, photographs, and a historical report that describe one of the largest open-spandrel reinforced concrete arch bridges designed by Indiana-based engineer Daniel B. Luten, the most prolific designer and builder of concrete bridges in America during the first three decades of the twentieth century. With 10 spans and a total length of 1,151 feet, the bridge represents the later part of the evolution of design for large-scale, multiple-span, open-spandrel reinforced concrete arch bridges that occured in the United States between circa 1910 and 1930. As reflected in its scale, economy, and the speed at which it was constructed, it stands as an important example of that bridge type and period.
Related Material
Additional Danville Road and Bridge Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia's web site. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."
Index Terms
- Danville (Va.) Circuit Court.
- Bridges -- Design and construction.
- Bridges -- Maintenance and repair.
- Bridges -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Causeways -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Danville (Va.) -- History.
- Local government records -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Plats (maps) -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Reports -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Road and Bridge Records -- Virginia -- Danville.
- Luten, Daniel B. (1869-1945)