Ohio's Preble County has a rich history in the early
settling of America. A former forest land peopled by Native Americans and
the base for Fort Saint Clair, an early outpost in the Northwest Territories
commanded by General "Mad Anthony" Wayne.
A little known fact is that Preble county is home to
more covered bridges than the more famous Madison County in Iowa. Preble County
boasts seven bridges of which five are still in everyday use. Madison County
has six standing bridges and only one remains in use. The others are only
for display.
Iowa's Madison County must be given credit for exploiting
their assets. Preble's bridges have yet to inspire a novel or be the locale
for a major motion picture. Preble County has treated their treasures as almost
a secret. Preble's bridges have withstood arson and repeated attacks by graffiti
artists. What we have here in both Preble County and Madison County are monuments
to a time long gone by. Preble County must quickly move to preserve these
bridges for the generations to come. it is a formidable, expensive, but not
impossible task for the Preble County Historical Society. I have attempted
to capture the essence and allure of these wonderful bridges in a series of
photographic renderings. Close your eyes and imagine carriages, buggies and
farmers hay wagons crossing these structures on a hot July afternoon. Maybe
pausing a moment to enjoy the protection from the sun and at other times shelter
from a rainstorm. Listen for the echo of horses hooves on the wooden decks.
Roberts Bridge, located in a city park on the south
edge of Eaton is Ohio's oldest remaining covered bridge. It was built in 1829.
A double-barrelled bridge, it formerly crossed Seven Mile Creek. In excellent
repair and in a most scenic setting is Brubaker bridge, one mile west of Gratis
on Brubaker Road, built in 1887. The Geeting bridge, a 101 foot span, lies
3 miles west of Lewisburg on Price Road, within a sight of the US 40 and I-70
intersection. It was built in 1894 as was the Harshman bridge on Concord-Fairhaven
Road over Four Mile Creek near Concord Church. The Warnke Covered bridge crosses
Swamp Creek three miles northeast of Lewisburg. It is the shortest span at
52 feet. The Dixon's Branch Covered Bridge built in 1887 is the other bridge
not still in use. Today it crosses a stream in Civitan Park in the quaint
village of Lewisburg. It was removed from Concord Road in 1964.
Clicking on the appropriate bridge picture on the
right will bring up a new browser window with larger version of the picture
along with a more detailed description.
You can also download
a pdf file of a map of Preble County, OH with the
location of each bridge indicated.
