| Rock O' The Range Bridge | |
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| Carries | Bowery Lane |
| Crosses | Swalley Canal |
| Maintained by | Local Homeowners |
| Design | Covered |
| Total length | 42 feet (13 m) |
| Vertical clearance | 12.3 feet (3.7 m) |
| Constructed by | Maurice Olson |
| Construction end | 1963 |
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Rock O' the Range Bridge
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| Nearest city: | Bend, Oregon |
| Built: | 1963 |
| Architectural style: | Other, King Post Truss |
| Governing body: | Private |
| MPS: | Oregon Covered Bridges TR |
| NRHP Reference#: | 79002054[1] |
| Added to NRHP: | November 29, 1979 |
The Rock O' The Range Bridge, sometimes called the Swalley Canal Bridge, is a bridge located north of Bend, Oregon, U.S., on a street adjacent to U.S. Route 97. It is the only covered span in the state of Oregon on the east side of the Cascade Range. It is also one of the few privately owned covered bridges.[2]
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William Bowen, a proprietor of land north of Bend, was forced to build an access road across the Swalley Canal to access his property. His bridge was inspired by the Goodpasture Bridge in Lane County. Bowen hired Maurice Olson to build the bridge; it was finished in 1963 for $4500 ($32,280 in 2012), and represents an architectural style unique to the state.
High loads have damaged the portal boards and roof braces, due to an unusually short 9-foot (270 cm) clearance.
Though the Rock O' The Range Bridge has a roof on it, it is technically not a covered bridge according to the World Guide because it is not supported by a truss.[2][3][4] The World Guide appended a letter to the identification number to make it unique to other covered bridges.
The bridge, because of its small size and safety hazard, is denied maintenance by Deschutes County. Upkeep is performed by homeowners using the bridge.[3]