Oblique view looking SE
Oblique view looking SE
Photo taken November 2008 by Wes Kinsler
View this photo at okbridges.wkinsler.com
BH Photo #151516
There is/was a gentleman who lives just NW of this bridge - it's the only house around. He is/was a retired (in 2003) Texas County employee who has lived there since the bridge was built. I haven't talked to him in @ 5 years so he may have passed on. I actually had him accompany me the few times I inspected the bridges in Texas County in the 1998-2004 time frame.
Anyway, from what I can recall, I believe he said this bridge used to be on the State Highway system in Texas County (he would know exactly where). Notice the date built - 1957? Oklahoma suffered record flooding almost state-wide then. That flood is the reason all the bridges in the Panhandle are so high over the tiny creeks! Many State & County bridges were washed out - is seems to reason that some bridges were re-used elsewhere.
At the time I knew him he told me the County would furnish the paint & he would paint it every 3-4 years! Also, there was another similar Hi-truss near this one (4-5 miles IIRC) that was replaced in @ 2000. The only other truss I knew about was also in the same general area - it was a pony truss @ 60'long which was also replaced @ 2000.
Gary
I passed over this cool bridge as a girl many, many times as my Dad, Grandfather and Great Uncle would be headed to Schultz Lake for a day of fishing. It was always a thrill to this high plains kid to be on an actual bridge:-)