“P” is for Poinsett Bridge

“P” is for Poinsett Bridge. Named for Joel Roberts Poinsett, president of the Board of Public Works (1819-1821), the Poinsett Bridge (with a span of 130 feet over Little Gap Creek) was built during the construction of the state highway from Columbia to Saluda Mountain in 1820. Still intact and in good repair in the twenty-first century, the bridge may be the oldest in the state. Located on Highway 42 just off Old Highway 25 in northern Greenville County, it was one of three Gothic-style arched bridges and forty-four smaller and simpler ones that spanned creeks and rivers along the Ridge between the Tyger and Enoree Rivers. Poinsett, who had traveled widely and was trained as an engineer, is credited with its unusual Gothic design. The Poinsett Bridge was listed in the National Register of historic places in 1970.