right The Bridge of Dreams is a 370-foot

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

located near Brinkhaven, Ohio. Originally built in the 1920s as a

railroad bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

, and covered in 1998. It is the second longest covered bridge in Ohio after the

Smolen–Gulf Bridge The Smolen–Gulf Bridge is a covered bridge which carries State Road (Ashtabula County Road 25) across the Ashtabula River at the Plymouth and Ashtabula Township line in northern Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. At 613 feet (182.9 mete ...

, and third longest covered bridge in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

History

The Bridge of Dreams spans the

Mohican River The Mohican River is a principal tributary of the Walhonding River, about long, in north-central Ohio in the United States. Via the Walhonding, Muskingum and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area o ...

Knox County, Ohio Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 62,721. Its county seat is Mount Vernon. The county is named for Henry Knox, an officer in the American Revolutionary War who was later the fir ...

. It is a pedestrian and bicycling bridge and part of the Mohican Valley Trail, a nature trail built on an abandoned railroad bed belonging to the old

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

. The bridge is closed to motorized traffic but is often used by

Amish The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churches ...

buggies. A railroad bridge at the site, carrying the

line over the river, was constructed in the 1920s. By the early 1990s, the line had been abandoned and a group of local residents and businesses developed a plan for converting it into a multi-use trail stretching from the Holmes County line near Brinkhaven, to Danville. The most ambitious aspect of the plan was to cover the 370 foot railroad bridge. Skeptics of this expensive plan claimed that its proponents were "dreaming", which led backers to adopt the name "Bridge of Dreams" for the project. Eventually planners were able to raise the almost $90,000 through contributions and a grant from the

Ohio Department of Natural Resources The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) is the Ohio state government agency charged with ensuring "a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all." ODNR regulates the oil and gas industry, the m ...

. The "Bridge of Dreams" was completed in December 1998 and dedicated in April 1999. The Mohican Valley Trail officially opened on June 15, 2001. Today the trail extends from East Street in Danville to the Holmes County Line, connecting the

Kokosing Gap Trail The Kokosing Gap Trail is a 14-mile-long recreational trail built on a former Pennsylvania Railroad right-of-way alongside the Kokosing River in east central Ohio. The trail begins in Mount Vernon and winds itself to Danville via Gambier and Howar ...

and the Holmes County Trails.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge Of Dreams Covered bridges in Ohio Buildings and structures in Knox County, Ohio Wooden bridges in Ohio Transportation in Knox County, Ohio Tourist attractions in Knox County, Ohio Pennsylvania Railroad bridges Bridges completed in 1998 Railroad bridges in Ohio Pedestrian bridges in Ohio Former railway bridges in the United States 1920s establishments in Ohio