| Engineering Genius: Lemuel Chenoweth
By Randy Allan
From 1846 through 1861, Lemuel Chenoweth (1811-1887) of Beverly in Randolph County was probably the most accomplished builder of covered bridges in America. During that time, Chenoweth and his brother Eli constructed 20 bridges, most of them covered, on four western Virginia turnpikes.
Lemuel Chenoweth attained the technical knowledge of a civil engineer largely through self-instruction. In 1845, in a reference written for the Virginia Board of Public Works, Randolph County officials described him as a "practical mechanic, draftsman, wood workman" who "knew how to lay out work." On April 17, 1846, Chenoweth wrote to the Virginia Board of Public Works expressing his desire to build a 130-foot covered bridge across the Tygart Valley River on the new Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike at Beverly. Chenoweth was to build the superstructure and Daniel Kalar was to construct the abutments.
Though the bridge was to be completed by the end of the year, the contract was not awarded to this team until September 21, 1846. Incredibly, by November 2, bridge construction was on schedule, and turnpike superintendent William Hamilton informed the Virginia Board of Public Works that "the bridge is now raised with floor and trusses being knocked out, and ready for travel once the west abutment is ready." He then described the raising of the bridge as follows: "People came from far and wide. Court was in session, but adjourned. The river bank was lined with spectators. This was the most spectacular event ever witnessed in the valley."
 As specified, the bridge was open for travel by the end of the year. Interestingly, a bridge built by another contractor that same year on the Buckhannon River in Buckhannon was plagued with serious construction problems and was never considered safe. This bridge was rebuilt by Chenoweth in 1856.
In 1847, when the Virginia Board of Public Works advertised for builders to construct five bridges on the Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike, their broadside included the following clause: "As a specimen of the work required ... bidders are referred to the Valley Bridge at Beverly." Surprisingly, Chenoweth, along with his brother Eli, received the contracts to build only two of the five bridges, both on the Hughes River. One was on the North Fork in Wirt County and the other was on the South Fork in Ritchie County. The contracts for the other three bridges, which were to be constructed on the Tygart River at Huttonsville in Randolph County, Stone Coal Creek, and the West Fork River in Weston in Lewis County, were awarded to other builders. Soon thereafter, a contract to build a sixth bridge at Stalnaker on the Tygart Valley River, two miles above Beverly, was also awarded to another builder.
By fall, work was nearly completed on Chenoweth’s two bridges but not on the other bridges. About this time, William Hamilton, accompanied by E. M. Taylor, an engineer with a very critical eye, inspected the progress of the six bridges. There were no glowing reports by Taylor until he viewed the nearly one-year-old Beverly Bridge. He described it as "excellent work, entirely true, straight and plumb, exceedingly uniform and graceful." He concluded, "I have never seen a job of bridge planning executed in a more workmanship manner." Two days later, Hamilton wrote of the Beverly Bridge, "It now stands a monument of its own strength ... and called on the travelers to witness its perfection."
The real test of all eight bridges came on December 11, 1847, when the entire region was struck by a devastating flood. A Beverly resident was quoted by Hamilton as saying, "The Valley River was higher at this place than it was ever known to be before by the oldest citizen." The five bridges that were not built by Chenoweth were either severely damaged or completely washed away. Chenoweth’s two new bridges received some damage, but it was mostly minor. (He had earlier advised that the abutments on these bridges be constructed four feet higher.) In reference to the Beverly Bridge, Hamilton wrote as follows: "This bridge bids defiance to wind and tide as there is not the slightest injury done by the flood."
 In 1848, Chenoweth built a large, arch-type bridge on the Middle Fork River on the Randolph and Upshur County line, as well as open bridges on Finks Creek in Gilmer County and Stillwell Creek in Wood County. In 1849, he built a bridge on the new Beverly and Fairmont Turnpike on Leading Creek near Leadsville, now Elkins, in Randolph County. This covered bridge was constructed in record time.
About this time, two other very large bridges were advertised to be built: a double-arch, double-lane bridge on the Tygart Valley River at Philippi in Barbour County and a double-arch, one-lane bridge on the West Fork River near Fairmont in Marion County. Chenoweth desperately wanted these contracts. To strengthen his bid, he built a model of a bridge truss that he recommended be used for these bridges.
In an April 25, 1850, letter to Charles Sanford, an engineer and acquaintance who lived near Richmond, Chenoweth asked Sanford to set a time when he could demonstrate his model before the Virginia Board of Public Works. In the letter, Chenoweth stated that he would have to "assemble it and then put it to the test."
It is believed that Chenoweth stood on his model truss before the Virginia Board of Public Works to demonstrate its strength. But in the end, he was awarded these contracts not because of his convincing presentation but because he was the low bidder. The two jobs were so large that Chenoweth had to sell his home in Beverly to have enough start-up money to undertake them. For the next six years he and his large family lived in a rented house.
 Lemuel and Eli Chenoweth signed contracts to build the Philippi and Fairmont bridges on April 22, 1851. The contracts for the abutments and piers had been awarded earlier to other contractors, and their work was to be completed by August 1, 1851. This gave Chenoweth time to have all the beams and lumber sawn and in place for construction. Their work was to be completed by October 1, 1851.
However, due to very serious engineering blunders by public officials, who misjudged the proper locations of the piers and underestimated the amount of masonry required, abutments were not completed on either bridge until the fall of 1852. But Chenoweth must have had excellent crews, as both bridges were ready for use by the end of December 1852 and described as "fully completed" soon thereafter.
On April 25, 1853, Chenoweth was awarded a contract to build a bridge over Buffalo Creek at Barrackville in Marion County. As might be expected, he completed work on this bridge, which still stands today, on schedule. In 1854, Chenoweth built a new bridge at Stalnaker, two miles up the Tygart River from Beverly, where the previous bridge had been washed out by the flood of December 11, 1847. That same year, he also built a double-arch bridge on the Greenbrier River at Marlin’s Bottom, now Marlinton, in Pocahontas County, on the Huttonsville and Huntersville Turnpike. From 1855 through 1860, Chenoweth built replacement bridges at Buckhannon and Weston, as well as several smaller bridges. As he advised, these smaller bridges were built as covered bridges so they would last much longer.
 In 1856, Chenoweth built his very unique, post-and-beam house in Beverly on a lot that overlooked his first bridge, the Beverly Bridge. In 1858, he built the Beverly Academy.
On June 17, 1861, Chenoweth was appointed superintendent of the Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike. By this time, Union troops were advancing east on the western end of the pike and Confederate troops were advancing west on the eastern end. Beverly was located strategically in the middle. Chenoweth’s first task as superintendent was to build a bridge across Red Run on Cheat Mountain near the eastern boundary of Randolph County to facilitate the advancement of the Confederate troops. From Staunton, Virginia, on July 29, 1861, he wrote to the Virginia Board of Public Works that he had repaired the bridge across the North Branch of the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, but because of the advancement of the Union Army, he had to abandon work at the bridge across the South Fork when "our army retreated east of that point." Over the next two months he supervised the construction of and repairs to several bridges east of that point.
Chenoweth submitted his final report from Hightown, Virginia, on October 9, 1861. He opened by stating his resignation, saying "Some of my family in Beverly was separated after the Battle of Rich Mountain and fled the county, and my time is required to build winter quarters." He also wrote that he could no longer secure help because "every well man was either farming or fighting."
 When Chenoweth returned to Beverly, he found that Union soldiers were billeted in his house. Sick and wounded Confederate officers were also cared for there, as the beds in the Beverly Union Hospital were used first for the Union troops. Chenoweth’s eldest son, Joseph, a Confederate major who had graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1860, died in the Battle of Port Republic on June 9, 1862. His next son, Taylor, enlisted one year later. Chenoweth’s first bridge also fell victim to the war when it was burned during a Confederate raid on Beverly on January 11, 1865. Chenoweth rebuilt the bridge in 1872 and it was dismantled about 1952.
Lemuel Chenoweth’s business card read "Builder and Architect," but he was also an inventor. Among the artifacts on display in his historic home in Beverly is a circa mid-1800s, working, scale-model sash sawmill, built by Chenoweth with futuristic design features. These features have been incorporated into modern sawmill design only in the last few decades.
Four structures still stand today to testify to Lemuel Chenoweth’s engineering genius: the Barrackville and Philippi covered bridges, the Huttonsville Presbyterian Church, and Chenoweth’s 1856 house. As it was in his day, his work is still admired, and it endures the tests of nature and time.
A lifelong resident of Beverly, Randy Allan holds a bachelor’s degree in forest land management from West Virginia University. He is the author of Bridging the Gaps, a biography of Lemuel Chenoweth. Contact him at randyallan@meer.net.
The Lemuel Chenoweth House
In 1997, author and local historian Randy Allan and his wife, Donna, acquired the Lemuel Chenoweth House in Beverly and soon thereafter began to restore it. During this effort, they discovered that the lot had been used extensively by early Native Americans. The house, which features three floors, an attic, and a cellar house, exhibits many structural features unique to Chenoweth. On display are Native American artifacts found on the site, paper memorabilia of turnpikes and bridges, a large exhibit of area Civil War activity, and a few items made by Chenoweth. The house is furnished with period antiques made of wood, iron, fabric, and glass. It is open seven days a week, except holidays, and there is no admission charge. The home is available for tours and special events.
For information, call 304.636.2650 or 304.636.1953; write to P. O. Box 239, Beverly, WV 26253; or e-mail randyallan@meer.net.
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Engineering Genius: Lemuel Chenoweth
