Phillips Covered Bridge

Phillips Covered Bridge
Arabia Bridge
National Register of Historic Places
Official name: Phillips Covered Bridge
Named for: The Phillips family
Country  United States
State  Indiana
County Parke
Township Wabash
Road Arabia Road
Crosses Rocky Run
Coordinates 39°46′20.17″N 87°19′20.71″W / 39.7722694°N 87.3224194°W / 39.7722694; -87.3224194Coordinates: 39°46′20.17″N 87°19′20.71″W / 39.7722694°N 87.3224194°W / 39.7722694; -87.3224194
Length 61 ft (19 m) 43ft +9ft overhangs on each end
Width 16 ft (5 m) [1]
Clearance 14 ft (4 m)
Builder Britton, J.A.
Design Multiple King Posts (no arch) single span
Material Wood
Built 1909
 - Repaired 1991 $7,000
Owned and Maintained by Parke County
NBI Number 6100057[2]
WGCB Number #14-61-12[3]
Added to NRHP Dec 22, 1978
NRHP Ref# 78000407 [4]
MPS Parke County Covered Bridges TR
Location of the Phillips Bridge in Indiana
Location of Indiana in the United States

The Phillips Covered Bridge is southeast of Montezuma, Indiana in Parke County, Indiana and crosses Rocky Run, also known as Big Pond Creek. Unlike the rest of the bridges of Parke County, it is a single span King Post bridge structure, having no arches, that was built by Joseph A. Britton in 1909.[1][5]

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.[4]

History

The Phillips Covered Bridge is often known as the Arabia Covered Bridge because the surrounding area was known as "Little Arabia." This name may of came from the Syrian Muslims immigrants that had settled nearby or maybe as a term of derision for the residents of the area who were thought of as little more than cattle thieves. The Arabia Church had been built on the hill south of the covered bridge. The only remains of the church now though are a step, foundation and some broken stained glass. However, the church's cemetery, Arabia Cemetery, remains and many of the headstones are inscribed with the "Phillips" name showing that the Phillips family had been prominent to the area near the bridge. The 1908 Parke County Atlas shows that the Phillips owned all the land west and south of the bridge.[1][6]

The bridge also holds the distinction of not only being the shortest covered bridge in Parke County but also the only bridge left that is not of Burr Arch construction, it is a four-segment Kings Post truss bridge. It took these honors in 1957 when its sister bridge, the Weisner Covered Bridge, was washed out. The Weisner Covered Bridge had been built the year before the Phillips Covered Bridge by J.A. Britton also using a four-segment Kings Post truss but was shorter than the Phillips Bridge.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Phillips Covered Bridge (#22)". coveredbridges.com. Parke County Incorporated / Parke County Convention and Visitors Commission. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  2. ↑ http://Nationalbridges.com
  3. ↑ http://www.indianacrossings.org/bridgeLinks/14-61-12.html
  4. 1 2 National Park Service (2007-01-23). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  5. ↑ "Indiana State Historic Architectural and Archaeological Research Database (SHAARD)" (Searchable database). Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. Retrieved 2016-06-01. Note: This includes Charles Felkner (December 1977). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Parke County Covered Bridge Historic District" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-06-01. and Site map.
  6. ↑ http://www.indianagenweb.com/inparke/Maps/1905ParkeCountyAtlasWabashTownship.jpg
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.