Historic and believed to be haunted SC bridge to undergo 6-month renovation
An Upstate bridge built more than 200 years ago and believed to be one of South Carolina’s most haunted sites will undergo a six-month renovation beginning at the end of September.
Poinsett Bridge is the last remaining piece of a road connecting the Upstate to the coast known as the State Road. It was named one of the 30 most haunted places in the United States by Condé Nast Traveler in 2019.
The story goes that workers contracted malaria while building the bridge and one of them was buried inside it, Condé Nast said.
There’s also the story of a headless man shot on the bridge in 1861 who comes at midnight on rainy nights. Some have said they’ve seen orbs and floating lights, heard screams and have had car trouble when they try to leave.
The bridge was built using a design painted in 1821 by South Carolinia architect Robert Mills, who designed the Washington Monument.
It was one of three in the Upstate on the State Road. The other two are submerged under the Saluda Reservoir.
Located on Callahan Mountain Road in Greenville County, the property was acquired by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Heritage Trust Program in 2003.
Made of stone, the bridge features a traditional gothic arch with the year 1820 etched into its keystone. It is believed to be the oldest bridge of its kind in the state.
The preservation work will include repointing lime mortar, replacing missing stones, resurfacing the bridge and adding a guardrail.
“This preservation project will ensure the bridge continues to stand for another 200 years,” DNR said in a news release.
Some questioned adding a guardrail, saying it would compromise the historic accuracy of the bridge.
“Seems like an excuse to waste money,” an Easley man wrote on Facebook. “The guard rail won’t help preserve anything and is taking away from the historic accuracy of the bridge. Also it won’t protect the bridge.”
DNR responded, “As a significant and rare architectural structure that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the SC Department of Archives and History reviewed the plans to ensure that preservation work will help protect the bridge while maintaining as much of its original historic character as possible.”
Poinsett Bridge is the centerpiece of the 396-acre Poinsett Bridge Heritage Preserve, which will be closed from Sept. 29 through March 31, 2026 during the bridge project.
The bridge is named for Charleston native Joel Roberts Poinsett — legislator, physician and botanist and U.S. ambassador to Mexico who brought the poinsettia flower to the United States.