The McKee Bridge is a
covered bridge in
Jackson County in the
U.S. state of
Oregon.
Built on land donated by Adelbert (Deb) McKee, a stage station operator, the bridge originally carried a road over the
Applegate River
The Applegate River is a -long tributary of the Rogue River in the U.S. state of Oregon. It drains approximately . Rising in northern California, it soon crosses the border and flows northeast then northwest to meet the Rogue about west of Gra ...
that linked the Blue Ledge Copper Mine to
Jacksonville. The site originally included an ore-hauler rest stop, about halfway between the mine and the city, where relief horses were stationed.
The bridge, about north of the
California border, carried mining and logging traffic from the year of its construction, 1917, through 1956.
An unincorporated community,
McKee Bridge, is near the bridge.
Since 1956, area residents, assisted at times by government funding, have maintained the bridge, which is used by pedestrians but not by motor vehicles.
McKee Picnic Ground in the
Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest is at the west end of the bridge along the river.
The picnic ground and bridge are about south of
Ruch
Ruch may refer to:
Settlements
*Ruch, Gironde, a commune in France
*Ruch, Oregon, an unincorporated community in Jackson County, Oregon
*Ruch-e Olya, a village in Qazvin Province, Iran
*Ruch-e Sofla, Qazvin, a village in Qazvin Province, Iran
In ...
along Applegate Road.
The McKee Bridge Historical Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to maintaining the pedestrian bridge, lists the height of the bridge at , which makes it the highest of the four remaining covered bridges in Jackson County. It is also the longest and oldest of the four.
Closed completely for three years because of rot in structural components as well as damage to the roof, the bridge reopened in June 2015 after major renovations. Grants totaling about $600,000 from the
Federal Highway Administration, supplemented by matching funds of about $60,000 raised by the McKee Bridge Historical Society, paid for the project. Mowat Construction Company of
Woodinville, Washington, carried out the rehabilitation.
See also
*
*
List of Oregon covered bridges
This list of Oregon covered bridges contains 50 historic covered bridges remaining in the U.S. state of Oregon.
Most covered bridges in Oregon were built between 1905 and 1925. At its peak, there were an estimated 450 covered bridges, which by 1 ...
References
External links
*
{{NRHP Jackson County, Oregon
1917 establishments in Oregon
Bridges completed in 1917
Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon
Transportation buildings and structures in Jackson County, Oregon
National Register of Historic Places in Jackson County, Oregon
Tourist attractions in Jackson County, Oregon
Wooden bridges in Oregon
Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon
Former road bridges in the United States