Knight's Bridge 37-03-02x

Photos 

Oregon State Highway Commission

Enlarge

BH Photo #314620

Map 

Essay 

The old Knights' Bridge was certainly one of Oregon's best-known covered bridges. Its very longevity earned it a special place in the hearts of those nostalgically inclined to admire the pioneer concept of quality.
Although frequently dated 1876, the contract was not let until March of 1877. A.S. Miller and Sons finished this, their most long-lived covered bridge, in November of that year. It was also one of the few bridges built by that firm which did not follow their usual Smith patent design. Plans in this case were by A.J. Cason, the local bridge superintendent.
In addition to Cason's strange truss, the bridge was immediately subject to protests from farmers complaining of the "low girts," which prevented passage of loaded hay wagons. Despite such disadvantages, or perhaps because of them, the bridge resisted every act of nature's destructive forces until 1947, when the old span was blown broadside into the Molalla River by a severe winter gale. Its passing was noted throughout the Willamette Valley for it had become a rural symbol of the settler's conquest over the rawness of the frontier.

Facts 

Overview

Lost Through truss bridge over Molalla River on Knights Bridge Rd.

Location

Canby, Clackamas County, Oregon

Status

Destroyed by wind in 1947

History

Built 1877

Builders

- A.J. Cason (Designer)
- A.S. Miller & Sons of Eugene, Oregon (Builder)

Design

Through truss; The main span is describes by Lee Nelson as an "Arch-Brace" truss

Dimensions

Length of largest span: 123.0 ft.
Total length: 250.0 ft.

Also called

Knights Bridge Road Covered Bridge
Molalla River Covered Bridge
Molalla River, Knights Bridge Rd

Approximate latitude, longitude

+45.26729, -122.71026   (decimal degrees)
45°16'02" N, 122°42'37" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")

Approximate UTM coordinates

10/522729/5012684 (zone/easting/northing)

Quadrangle map:

Canby

Land survey

T.3 S., R. 1 E., Sec. 32

Inventory numbers

WGCB 37-03-02X (World Guide to Covered Bridges number)
BH 65697 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Update Log 

• January 26, 2015: Essay added by Rebecca Burrow

Sources 

• Rebecca Burrow

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