Root Covered Bridge
Root Covered Bridge | |
 Western (downstream) side of the bridge | |
  Location within Ohio  Location within the United States | |
| Nearest city | Decaturville, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°20′33″N 81°45′16″W / 39.34250°N 81.75444°W |
| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1878 |
| Architect | Rolla Merydith |
| Architectural style | Long truss |
| NRHP reference No. | 75001552[1] |
| Added to NRHP | March 27, 1975 |
The Root Covered Bridge is a historic wooden covered bridge in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio.[1] Located off State Route 555 in far northern Decatur Township, Washington County,[2] the bridge was built in 1878 in the Long truss mode of truss bridge construction.[1] Measuring 65 feet (20 m) in its single span,[3] it spans the West Branch of the Little Hocking River.[4]: 1398
Constructed with weatherboarded walls on stone abutments and equipped with a metal roof and elements of iron and steel,[5] the Root Bridge was named for the nearby community of Root Town, which has since become a ghost town. Its builders were Charles and Alta Merydith, who built many other Washington County bridges;[4]: 1398 two other bridges in the county, known as the Hune and the Harra Covered Bridges, also employ the Long truss.[6] It is believed that the Merydith family heavily favored the style, because they were responsible for building both of those bridges.[4]: 1394 Throughout Ohio, only eight Long truss bridges are in existence today;[4]: 1393 the majority of Ohio's Long truss bridges are located in southern Ohio. Besides the importance of the Merydith family, this concentration is also likely due to the presence of one of the designer's agents in the region, who also functioned as a general contractor for bridge construction in southern Ohio.[3]
In early 1975, the Root Covered Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places,[1] qualifying because of its importance as a well-preserved example of historic engineering methods.[5] It was the first Washington County covered bridge to be listed on the Register, although five others — including the Harra and Hune bridges — have since received the same designation.[1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ↑ DeLorme. Ohio Atlas & Gazetteer. 7th ed. Yarmouth: DeLorme, 2004, 81. ISBN 0-89933-281-1.
- 1 2 Moore, Elma Lee. Ohio's Covered Bridges. Charleston: Arcadia, 2010, 117.
- 1 2 3 4 Owen, Lorrie K., ed. Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places. Vol. 2. St. Clair Shores: Somerset, 1999.
- 1 2 Root Covered Bridge, Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2011-03-12.
- ↑ Covered Bridges of Washington County, Marietta & Washington County Convention & Visitors Bureau, n.d. Accessed 2011-03-12.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Root Covered Bridge at Wikimedia Commons
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| Related | |
- Bridges completed in 1878
- Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio
- Bridges in Washington County, Ohio
- National Register of Historic Places in Washington County, Ohio
- Wooden bridges in Ohio
- Tourist attractions in Washington County, Ohio
- Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio
- Long truss bridges in the United States
- 1878 establishments in Ohio