Some sources suggest the bridge survived until 2010, but this appears to be unlikely. Coordinates provided are for the current Shankstown Creek crossing of Coon Box Road. The suspension bridge may have been on a slightly different alignment.
1927: Repaired by W.H. Groome and Son incorporating an improved anchoring system.
NPGallery Asset Detail - Coon Box Fork Bridge. National Register of Historic Places site survey. Presents a brief history of the bridge, but perhaps confuses the matter of its location. States: "Swinging suspension bridge and county road right-of-way along Coon Box Road where the said bridge crosses North Fork Coles Creek." Current-day (2021) Coon Box Road crosses Shankstown Creek near North Fork Coles Creek, but never crosses North Fork Coles Creek. Historic maps of the area place the mid-1900s Shankstown Creek crossing of Coon Box Fork at roughly the same location as the current crossing (the coordinates provided in this record). Looking at historic satellite images of the location, the suspension bridge was probably on an alignment no more than 100 feet north of the current Coon Box Road Shankstown Creek bridge.
Do you have any information or photos about this bridge that you would like to share? Please email
david.denenberg@bridgemeister.com.