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    Natural Bridge
    Natural Bridge
    Natural Bridge
    Ebook200 pages52 minutes

    Natural Bridge

    By Ernst H. Kastning PhD

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    About this ebook

    Natural Bridge, located in the historic Shenandoah Valley, is one of the most recognized and visited geologic landmarks in the country. The massive 90-foot-wide arch spans Cedar Creek, which runs 200 feet below. Legend says that George Washington, as a young land surveyor, carved his initials on its wall. In 1774, King George III granted ownership to Thomas Jefferson. Natural Bridge was often regarded as the Eighth Natural Wonder of the World during the 19th and 20th centuries. The site became a popular venue for events, ranging from conventions to the annual Easter Sunrise Service. Hotels, inns, and cottages were built to accommodate travelers, and on-site attractions including a show cave, a wax museum, and a Monacan Indian village broadened visitor appeal. Natural Bridge remained privately owned until 2014, when the title was transferred, allowing it to become a state park; the bridge will now truly belong to the people, a concept that would have made Jefferson proud.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateOct 13, 2014
    ISBN9781439647776
    Natural Bridge
    Author

    Ernst H. Kastning PhD

    Ernst H. Kastning, PhD, is a consulting geologist and historian. During his 48-year career as a hydrogeologist and engineer, he taught at universities in Kentucky, Connecticut, and Virginia. He has explored, mapped, and studied caves in over 40 states, primarily Virginia, Texas, New York, and in New England. Kastning writes and lectures extensively on geology, speleology, and history.

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      Book preview

      Natural Bridge - Ernst H. Kastning PhD

      Bridge!

      INTRODUCTION

      Natural Bridge, near Lexington, Virginia, has been an iconic landmark since it was first described in the mid-1700s. If the residents of the commonwealth were asked to select a natural feature that would best serve as a symbol of Virginia, it is likely that most would choose Natural Bridge.

      Upon being awarded a grant by King George on July 5, 1774, Thomas Jefferson became the first owner of the bridge and surrounding land. In the succeeding 240 years, Natural Bridge has been in private hands; from 1835 until 1881, 10 other individuals owned the property. After that time, several corporations and investment firms bought and managed the property. Angelo Puglisi, a real estate investor, purchased the property in 1988. On February 6, 2014, he sold much of the land to the Virginia Conservation Legacy Fund, a nonprofit holding company that will manage the property. As part of the transfer, Puglisi has donated parcels that include the bridge and surrounding wild lands in order to create Natural Bridge State Park in the very near future. So this book comes at a historic juncture. After over a quarter millennium of visitation and rich history, the majestic arch, a nationally recognized natural landmark, is becoming the people’s bridge, a concept that would have made Thomas Jefferson proud.

      Natural Bridge is a massive, 90-foot-wide arch of rock that spans Cedar Creek, over 200 feet below. The arch is more than 25 feet thick and strong enough to support US Route 11, the Lee Highway, which runs over it.

      Geologically, the bridge is a karst landform. Karst is created by water dissolving bedrock. On the surface, karst features include sinkholes, sinking streams, springs, and sculpted rock surfaces. Below the ground, karst is characterized by caves and conduits of all sizes that often rapidly transmit groundwater. Most observers would classify Natural Bridge as a surficial karst landform, as it is completely visible in daylight. In reality, however, Natural Bridge is a cave, albeit one that is very short but with a huge cross-section! The consensus among geologists is that the bridge is what remains of a much longer cave that once ran through the limestone. Over geologic time, much of the rock over the cave has been removed by natural erosion. The remaining segment of the former cave now resembles a bridge more than a cave. Natural Bridge is by far the largest karstic natural bridge in North America. As is evident on the cover of this book and in the images inside, this huge structure dwarfs those who walk through it.

      The majesty of the arch and its shear size have inspired all those who have come upon it, including Native Americans and early Colonial settlers. The Monacan people referred to the arch as the Bridge of God. In his 1787 book Notes on the State of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson wrote, Natural Bridge, the most sublime of nature’s works. This phrase has been quoted ever since in literature promoting and extolling the bridge as a destination for tourism.

      Over the centuries, in the age before photography, painters and illustrators captured the iconic arch on canvas and paper, and many of these images appeared in books and journals in America and throughout Europe. These views and accompanying early descriptions inspired many to make the arduous journey by horse and carriage to this part of the Shenandoah Valley in order to view this natural wonder themselves. Visitors returned home and further spread the word. This self-ramifying effect brought about one of the earliest surges of tourism in the United States, rivaling visits to Niagara Falls and emerging resorts in the northeastern and mid-Atlantic regions. As a result, the evolution of Natural Bridge as a vacation destination from the mid-1800s to the present is an excellent case study in the history of tourism in the United States. This is reflected in the construction of buildings and roads at the site and incorporation of events that would enhance experiences for visitors and guests.

      Initially, visitors arrived by horse-drawn coaches and carriages. A number of large wooden hotels were built from 1830 to 1881, culminating in the grand Natural Bridge Hotel, completed in 1917. Most were constructed on the property, but some appeared nearby as well. None survive today, as they were razed to make room for new buildings or were destroyed by fire.

      As people began to own automobiles, they soon took to the new highways to spend vacations farther from home. The emergence of autotourism forever changed vacationing in the 20th century. Motor inns, motor lodges, and motels sprang up along major arteries, especially through popular areas like the Shenandoah Valley. Natural Bridge, with its new motor lodging, became what is arguably the most popular destination along the Lee Highway. Support buildings, such as the Gatehouse, were built, expanded, and later replaced. Rockbridge Center, the large contact station built in 1954, was the epitome for its day. Restaurants, cafeterias, snack bars, swimming pools, and gift shops became part of the infrastructure of many tourist attractions, including Natural Bridge. After the devastating hotel fire of 1963, the new Natural Bridge Hotel became not only an attractive inn for the traveler, but it offered a venue for countless conventions, meetings, and gatherings. Through it all, the magnificent Natural Bridge remained the magnet drawing people to the site.

      Visitors are still drawn by two events instituted decades ago. The illumination of the bridge and the Drama of Creation have been nightly events during tourism seasons since 1927 and 1932, respectively. Beginning in 1947, Natural Bridge hosted an annual Easter Sunday Sunrise Service along Cedar Creek near the bridge. It was broadcast nationally by radio, and attendance peaked at over 18,000 in the 1950s. This tradition continues today.

      As has been a trend throughout the tourism industry, additional attractions were incorporated at Natural Bridge following World War II. Over the years, these included an antique car museum, wax museum, haunted monster

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