Covered Bridge

Hello there, this is Nelson Olstead. Today let's take a tour to the land of the covered bridge. Our story in a moment after a word from Cliff Gugger and Pacific Power. Welcome once again to Stories of Pacific Power Land, a presentation of Pacific Power and Light, the company that has been serving the electric needs of the region's homes, farms and industries

through more than half a century of progress and growth. Now here's Nelson with today's chapter from his Pacific Power Land storybook. It's a land of many rivers, the Willamette Valley in western Oregon, and the pioneer settlers there soon made it a land of many bridges as well.

Across rivers with musical names, Sandiam, Calapuya, Tuolatan, Malala. Across streams with purely practical names, Cow Creek, Canyon Creek, Fall Creek, these early settlers laid great timbers, hewn from forest giants. They trust them with beams and flood them with planks and open roads for the young commerce of the valley to cross.

Being practical people, they demanded much of their bridges. Two citizens discussing the subject might have sounded like this. And this has mighty damn country. How long do you figure a bridge like that last? I don't know much about this fur timber, but I'd say she'd be good for maybe eight or ten years.

You know, back east where I come from, some folks put roofs over the bridges. They claimed they last twice as long that way. And so in many cases early day bridges were covered with a barn-like roof to protect the timbers and vital joints from decay.

The first two covered bridges of record were built in Oregon City in 1851 and 52. But many tax payers objected to the extra money that was expended for roofing bridges. A citizen of Benton County reacted this way.