49Lionel posted:That stone bridge visible from 81 south of Staunton was built for the Valley Railroad, which was built southward and aimed to connect with Salem (then bigger than Big Lick, which turned into Roanoke). It ran out of money and rails were never laid south of Lexington. The portion of the line from Lexington to Staunton was torn up late in the 19th century, and north of Staunton it became part of the Chesapeake Western. The competing Shenandoah Valley Railroad, which traversed the Valley to the east, fared better and is today's NS Valley line.
For those of you who are interested in The Valley Railroad, I would highly suggest that you find a copy of the book "Iron Horses in the Valley - The Valley and Shenandoah Valley Railroads, 1866-1882" by John R. Hildebrand.
Although the Valley RR's track didn't go farther south than Lexington, it did built bridge structures all the way into Roanoke County. If you know where to find them, a lot are still out there. If I am not mistaken, the book notes a lot of these along with the right of way from Lexington to Salem, Va.
