Poinsett Bridge
Address: 580 Callahan Mountain Rd, Travelers Rest, SC 29690
- Historic Site
- Walking Trail
History of Poinsett Bridge
Poinsett Bridge is the centerpiece of the 120 acre Poinsett Bridge Heritage preserve owned by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and maintained by Greenville County Rec. Constructed in 1820, it is believed to be the oldest surviving bridge in the state. Named after Joel Poinsett, a prominent early resident of Greenville and a U.S. ambassador to Mexico, the bridge was part of the State Road that connected Charleston and Columbia with the North Carolina mountain communities into Tennessee. It is a 14 foot Gothic arch stone structure and stretches 130 feet over Little Gap Creek. Historians believe that is was designed by Robert Mills, architect of the Washington Monument.
