The National Road brought a more deliberate form of overland travel across eastern Ohio, carrying stagecoaches, wagons, livestock, and westbound settlers along the first highway built entirely with federal funds. As the road crossed the rolling streams of Muskingum and Guernsey counties, its builders used stone arch bridges that were practical, durable, and suited to the terrain. Among the most distinctive survivors are Ohio’s S bridges, whose curved approaches gave each crossing its name.