In the era when this little bridge over Pumpkinvine Creek was abandoned, bridges like this were not uncommon across the county. As much as 10 of these pony truss structures were still in used, though most were removed throughout the same decade.

The Old Alabama Road bridge was replaced as part of a larger project to relocate the gravel road to a state highway quality road from Highway 61 to 293. While part had been completed earlier to allow the expansion of the Cartersville Airport, this section extended the highway into Emerson where it shrinks into a narrow street.

The Old Alabama Road truss structure is extremely threatened because of a number of factors. The major ones are age, the undercutting of the eastern approach, which is causing the bridge to lean and will ultimately cause its collapse. The biggest of all, though, is the planned four-laning of Old Alabama Road into a new State Route 113, which will likely destroy this bridge as it would be in the way of the eastbound lanes. I would like to admonish Bartow County or some surrounding county to save this structure before it can't be saved. It would fit quite nicely on a small local road in need of a bridge replacement with a beautifully restored pony truss.

In addition to the photo on the right, check out the photos below. All photos by J.T. Legg taken January 24, 2006.