Bellaire Interstate Toll Bridge
A landmark in Bellaire that spans over the Ohio River between Bellaire, OH and Benwood, WV

The Bellaire Toll Bridge, also known as the Interstate Bridge, was opened Wednesday, December 22, 1926.  The bridge was designed by J. E. Greiner and Company, with the Vang Construction Company as contractors of the substructure; the J.E. Moss Iron Works and the Mt. Vernon Bridge Company as co-contractors of the superstructure.  The R. R. Kitchen company of Wheeling had charge of placing the floor in the bridge.  Believing that some day street cars might cross the structure, the floor was provided with car rails, the bridge having been constructed strong enough to carry the 100,000 pound trolley cars. The overall length of the bridge is 2770 feet, including the approach of 850 feet on the West Virginia side and 670 feet on the Ohio side of the river.  The highest point in the bridge being 350 feet above the water line. More than 7 million pounds of steel were used in building the bridge. It took 18 months of construction and more than a million and a half dollars, much of which was subscribed by Ohio Valley residents. Although hundreds of bridge men and construction workers were on the job, but one fatal accident occurred while building the bridge, when Fred Morning fell from a pier on the Benwood side to the ground, sustaining injuries which resulted in his death on June 12, 1926.  At the time the bridge was constructed, Wheeling was the largest city in West Virginia with an estimated population of 68,000 people. Seven thousand automobiles crossed both ways on opening day, December 22, 1926.

(photo source unknown)

Toll across the bridge remained a bargain at only a nickel for a one way trip from the opening of the bridge until 1971, when it was increased to a quarter. After the increase, toll for a round trip was 40 cents, but then increased to 50 cents one way/dollar - round trip.
 
A wedding took place on the bridge July 4, 1927 between Roberta Pearl Thomas of Wheeling, and Harry E. Stricklin of Bellaire. The public was invited to attend the ceremony.

Portions of the film Silence of the Lambs, starring Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins, were filmed in Bellaire and on the bridge. The film went on to received several Academy Awards, including best picture, best actress (Foster), and best actor (Hopkins).

The bridge was closed to traffic on May 1st, 1991.  The Interstate Bridge Company sold the right of way, for the Ohio ramp to the bridge, to the Ohio Department of Transportation for $2.1 million in November of 1990. ODOT demolished the ramp in May 1991 in order to build state route 7 through Bellaire. The bridge itself was sold to Roger Barack, owner of a construction company and Bank One building in Bellaire, in March of 1991.  There was speculation of building another ramp over route 7, but no action was taken to do so.  The bridge remains closed in with no available access on the Ohio side.  In 2002, Benwood officials asked that the bridge be torn down due to debris falling from the structure on their side of the river.  As of April 2002, nothing has been decided on the bridge's fate.  

To this day, the Bellaire Bridge remains a landmark for the citizens of Bellaire and surrounding communities.

SOURCES INCLUDE:
Martins Ferry Daily Times  (Martins Ferry, OH)
December 22, 1926
July 1, 1927

The Intelligencer  (Wheeling, WV)
December 1, 1990
March 27, 1991

The Wheeling News Register - Ohio Edition  
(Wheeling, WV)
April 22, 1991

A letter from the Interstate Bridge Company dated March 27, 1948 (Bellaire, OH).