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Peppertown "Short" Covered Bridge

Franklin County, Indiana

Photos 

"Short" Covered Bridge on the Left

1903 Ben Winans photo

Indiana Historical Society

BH Photo #445938

Map 

Description 

The bridge was originally built in 1874 by the Smith Bridge Company, and was apparently a Smith truss. A 1903 photo doesn't reveal the trusses but does show that it clearly had arches. It was either heavily damaged or destroyed in the 1913 flood and was rebuilt by E.L. Kennedy. A 1938 photo shows that it was undoubtedly a Burr Arch truss at that time.

Facts 

Overview
Lost Burr arch-truss bridge over Salt Creek on Peppertown Road (SR 229)
Location
Franklin County, Indiana
Status
Replaced by a new bridge
History
Built in 1874; Lost in the 1913 Flood; Rebuilt in 1913; Replaced in 1940.
Builders
- E.L. Kennedy & Sons (1914 Bridge)
- Smith Bridge Co. of Toledo, Ohio (1874 Bridge)
Dimensions
Total length: 172.0 ft.
Also called
Butts Fork Covered Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+39.44629, -85.15047   (decimal degrees)
39°26'47" N, 85°09'02" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/659148/4367936 (zone/easting/northing)
Inventory number
BH 84840 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

19th Century (9,794)
Built 1874 (143)
Built during 1870s (1,528)
Burr arch-truss (1,010)
Covered (3,481)
E.L. Kennedy & Sons (2)
Franklin County, Indiana (89)
Indiana (5,251)
 Lost (32,302)
Lost 1940 (123)
Lost during 1940s (682)
Replaced by new bridge (22,014)
Smith Bridge Co. (147)
Through truss (19,311)
Total length 125-175 feet (6,502)
Truss (38,697)

Update Log 

  • August 8, 2022: New photo from Stewart Edwin Beitler
  • April 16, 2019: New photo from Ed Hollowell
  • April 8, 2019: New photo from Tony Dillon
  • March 31, 2019: New photo from Tony Dillon
  • March 30, 2019: New photo from Tony Dillon

Sources 

  • Tony Dillon - spansaver [at] hotmail [dot] com
  • Ed Hollowell - erhollowell [at] aol [dot] com
  • Stewart Edwin Beitler - stubear0430 [at] gmail [dot] com
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Comments 

Peppertown "Short" Covered Bridge
Posted April 16, 2019, by Ed Hollowell (erhollowell [at] aol [dot] com)

Yes, it appears I had them confused. That said it seems they did rebuild the pier and abutments because these appear to have been undermined extensively. The ones remaining today appear very solid and upright.

Peppertown "Short" Covered Bridge
Posted April 16, 2019, by Tony Dillon (spansaver [at] hotmail [dot] com)

I see a pier and two abutments in the foreground of pic #4 which would mean that is the Long Bridge and the one in the rear is the Peppertown "Short" Bridge.

Another interesting observation here is that there are arch bearing seats clearly visible on the pier and the Right abutment of the Long Bridge. Also the small section of truss that remains intact is a Multiple Kingpost, and not a Smith truss. I see nothing to doubt that both bridges were originally built as Burr Arches. If they were truly built by the Smith Bridge Company that would be a first for them using a Burr to my knowledge. The Long Bridge obviously had to be completely rebuilt, but it appears that the Short may have only had minor damage.