Bourland Bridge
Photos
local stone revetment on west side of north approach road
Photo taken by M C Toyer in Mar 2014
BH Photo #279381
Description
This bridge was on the main road from Whitesboro and Dexter Texas to the Delaware Bend Ferry on Red River and nearby town of Orlena. It was located on property settled by James G Bourland in the 1850s.The ferry and town of Orlena were abandoned and inundated by the waters of Lake Texoma constructed in the 1940s.
The road on which the bridge was located is shown on the 1902 USGS Map of Cooke County, TX. An alternate route is shown on the 1940 Texas Highway Department Map which bypasses the section of road on which the bridge was located.
The concrete abutment on the north bank is intact along with the approach road with local stone revetment. The south concrete abutment has collapsed and the approach road and revetment eroded and scattered in the creek bed.
Added: Excerpt from an unpublished manuscript by Hal Dick, who was born in Delaware Bend in 1924 and resided there until displaced by Lake Texoma in the 1940s. Used by permission. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by author, Hal Dick.
"Orlena was another name for Delaware Bend. And the main road through the upper bottoms was Orlena Road. The road began on the prairie, up on higher ground, then crossed Bourland Bridge and the dipping vats (concrete pits that cattle were chased through for insect control). The road meandered on down past small farms and houses. Then it continued past more houses, some businesses, and finally to the ferry and the river, where it ended. The road was several miles long and went through a heavily populated area (even though it looks deserted today)."
Facts
- Overview
- Lost bridge over Unnamed creek / tributary of Red River on Abandonded section of the Dexter and Delaware Bend Road
- Location
- Cooke County, Texas
- Status
- Derelict/abandoned
- Future prospects
- Only remnants remain
- History
- Built est 1890
- Also called
- Old Orlena Road Bridge
Old Delaware Bend Road Bridge - Approximate latitude, longitude
- +33.91466, -96.96374 (decimal degrees)
33°54'53" N, 96°57'49" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 14/688247/3754560 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Lebanon
- Inventory number
- BH 60213 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Comments
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