I agree that there were undoubtedly several benefits from the cover. Under
heavy wet snow from a blizzard though, I'm certain the roof would collapse
under snow before the deck ever came close to it. I originally made
mention of rot prevention because it is the first thing mentioned by the
bridge historians in all the reading I did about them. One of the side
notes by one historian cited their use for weddings, political rallies,
"town hall" meetings, and other very large gatherings as they were often
the largest covered structure around. Many served more functions than just
as a bridge.
I'm wondering what you mean by "twin" bridges (side-by-side?). There are
several in Indiana with triple spans, and a number of others with doubles.
The longest is a triple in Jackson County at 458 feet long (roughly 150
meters). If you're ever in Indiana, Parke County along the Wabash River on
the western edge of the state has 32 of them . . . over a third of the 93
statewide . . . and our counties are small. At one time (circa 1890-1920)
there were an estimated 400-500 of them in the state. The number began
diminishing with the advent of iron truss bridges which is likely the type
of rickety thing Ken Norton drove over. Those have a beauty of their own,
particularly (IMO) the arched truss type. The transition to iron wasn't
immediate, but began with wood reinforced by iron in key portions of the
structure (iron plates and rods). There are quite a few of the iron ones
around too.
-- John
At 19:05 6/19/00 , you wrote:
>Yet another theory:
>
>In the days when horse drawn wagons were common, bridges were designed with
>covered sides in order to prevent horses from being frightened by the water
>over
>which the bridge was built. I suspect the reality of it all is that it was not
>just one, but a combination of these reasons for their existance.
>
>As a side note, if you find yourself interested in covered bridges, you should
>definitely look into visiting central Pennsylvania; Columbia and Montour
>counties specifically. These two counties claim to have one of the highest
>concentration of covered bridges in the U.S, many of them are in regular
>service. It's such a big thing that PennDOT recently spent several million
>dollars to refurbish an older one. Additionally, the only set of "twin covered
>bridges" are also located in this area as well. It's a pretty neat feeling to
>drive over one, honking the horn when you enter in order to let cars coming in
>the opposite direction know you're already "in" the bridge. Almost a trip back
>in time :)
>
>Now for some OM related content: When I got my OM a few years ago, it came
with
>a Tokina EL 28/2.8 wide angle lens. Can anyone comment on the quality of this
>lens or its results? I have an opportunity to pick up a Zuiko of the same
>length, and was wondering what I might gain by doing so...
>
>Thanks in advance!
>
>Bill
>
>
> That doesn't explain the many covered bridges in Western Oregon,
> where it doesn't snow!
>
> I'd guess they either did it here out of 1) nostalgia, for the
> bridges back home, or 2) to keep the moss from growing on them, which
> makes them slippery.
>
> >The covered bridges are maintained for the benefit of tourism, mostly.
>
> There are still a number of "working" covered bridges in the
> Willamette Valley; many are well off the beaten tourist track.
>
> My guess is the cost of replacing them is simply much more than the
> cost of maintenance.
>
>
>
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