 The
Westport Covered Bridge crosses Sand Creek and is located east of Westport
on Layton Road, in Section 5, Township 8 North, and Range 9 East, Decatur
County. This single span Burr Arch Truss structure has a length of 115 feet,
or 130 feet including the 7-foot 6-inch overhang at each end, with a portal
clearance 16 feet wide by 13 feet high. Archibald M. Kennedy & Sons,
who were awarded payment of $16.00 per foot, built the Bridge in 1880; E.
S. Bussell & Brothers constructed the abutments. In its original form
the bridge was completely enclosed, however, the full-length windows were
the final outcome as openings were slowly added over time to allow visual
acknowledgement of oncoming traffic. The road finally bypassed this structure
in 1975 and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places June
25, 1982. Listed as #14-16-01 in the 1989 World Guide this structure was
closed to traffic and by 2002 and when I first visited the bridge, it was
in a sad state. The citizens of Westport worked together to completely restore
this Kennedy structure to its original grandeur and in the summer of 2004
it was once again opened to limited traffic!
|
click here for
membership information
