The Valley Pike Covered Bridge was a historic covered bridge located in Mason County,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

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 ...

. It crossed the Frasure Branch of Lee Creek. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1976. The bridge was dismantled after flood damage on April 27, 2018. The bridge construction was single kingpost, resting on stone

abutments An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end which provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

. The

span Span may refer to: Science, technology and engineering * Span (unit), the width of a human hand * Span (engineering), a section between two intermediate supports * Wingspan, the distance between the wingtips of a bird or aircraft * Sorbitan es ...

was short – 30 to 35 feet – consistent with the single kingpost system. The structure had tin siding and roofing. It was the only privately owned covered bridge in Kentucky and had provided access to farmland. A number of reasons have been offered to explain the construction of covered bridges in Kentucky during the 19th century. Roads across the bridges were kept dry and free of snow in winter. The protection the cover provided against wood deterioration was likely most important. The cover allowed timbered trusses and braces to season properly and kept water out of the joints, prolonging the life by seven to eight times that of an uncovered bridge.

References

{{Authority control Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky Wooden bridges in Kentucky Tourist attractions in Mason County, Kentucky National Register of Historic Places in Mason County, Kentucky Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky King post truss bridges in the United States Buildings and structures demolished in 2018 Demolished buildings and structures in Kentucky Transportation in Mason County, Kentucky Former bridges in the United States

See also

References