Lawrence County residents have worked hard to preserve their history.

     Some were worried that when the historic White Sands Creek Bridge was closed last year because of structural problems, it would be replaced with a newer one. Now they know there’s no reason to fret.

     Maintenance on the bridge began in June and Lawrence County Engineer Jeff Dungan said he expects the work to be finished in about a month.

     “We identified the need during a bridge inspection last year,” he said. “It’s taken this long to go through the process.”

     The process Dungan is referring to is twofold.

     One involves getting approval from the state to use state funds for repairs. The other requires the county to get approval from the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, since the bridge and the stretch of road it’s on are listed as historical landmarks.

     “[The Department of Archives and History] has the authority to say what is done to it and what happens,” Dungan said.

     The bridge and a 5.56-mile section of River Road were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in March 2011. Kay Allen, president of the Lawrence County Historical Society, said she is pleased the bridge won’t be permanently closed.

     “We’re thrilled,” she said. “That was an historical road and our heritage.”

     Allen said what usually happens is the county will build a new bridge next to the old one or in another location, and the old bridge will disintegrate over time. Fortunately, that was not the case this time, though Dungan said they had looked at building a new bridge first.

     “It’s not feasible to replace it right now,” he said. “We’re just doing the necessary repairs to keep it open to traffic.”

     Dungan said the bridge only holds up to 10,000 pounds, which by today’s standards is a very low number. He said cracks in the steel components caused the closure, and fixing those issues would enable them to reopen the bridge.

     Bo Bourne is the Lawrence County resident responsible for bringing the road to the attention of the historical society. He said he had been playing close attention to what happens to the bridge.

     “We’ve been watching it over the last several months to see what they plan on doing,” he said. “The good news is that they are refurbishing it.”

     Bourne said the area is very important to Mississippi history and he said area residents would like to do something to commemorate the reopening. 

     “This was the fourth-oldest road in the Mississippi Territory,” he said. “We’d like to do a dedication of the road when they reopen.”