Pengra Bridge

Summary

The Pengra Bridge is a covered bridge near Jasper in the U.S. state of Oregon.[1] The 120-foot (37 m) Howe truss structure carries Place Road over Fall Creek in Lane County.[2] It replaced an earlier bridge, built in 1904, that crossed the creek a few feet further upstream.[2]

Pengra Bridge
Photograph of a covered bridge
The Pengra Bridge in 2006
LocationSpanning Fall Creek on Place Road[1]
Nearest cityJasper, Oregon
Coordinates43°57′58″N 122°50′43″W / 43.966056°N 122.845404°W / 43.966056; -122.845404
AreaApprox. 8,400 square feet (780 m2)[1]
Built1938[1]
MPSOregon Covered Bridges TR
NRHP reference No.79002092
Added to NRHPNovember 29, 1979

Pengra Bridge was named in honor of Byron J. Pengra, a government surveyor.[3] The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[4]

The lower chords of the bridge, at 16 by 18 inches (41 by 46 cm) by 126 feet (38 m), are among the longest timbers ever used in an Oregon bridge.[2] Timbers of this size simplified some aspects of construction but required special techniques to finish and position at the site.[2] Other features of the bridge include ribbon windows under the eaves, a side window on one side, and semi-elliptical arched portals.[5]

Weather and traffic weakened the bridge over time, and it was temporarily closed in 1979. With the help of state funding from the Oregon Covered Bridge Program, the county repaired the structure, which was re-opened to traffic in 1995.[2]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Thematic Group Nomination: Oregon Covered Bridges: Pengra Bridge, Index No. 25" (PDF). 1979. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Fall Creek (Pengra) Covered Bridge" (PDF). Oregon Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
  3. ^ Young, Amalie (July 8, 2001). "The Bridges in Our Own Back Yard". Eugene Register-Guard. pp. 3H. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
  4. ^ 45 FR 17446, at 17475 (March 18, 1980).
  5. ^ Smith, Dwight A.; Norman, James B.; Dykman, Pieter T. (1989) [1986]. Historic Highway Bridges of Oregon (2nd ed.). Portland: Oregon Historical Society Press. p. 192. ISBN 0-87595-205-4.

External links edit

  •   Media related to Pengra Bridge at Wikimedia Commons
  • Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. OR-119, "Pengra Bridge, Spanning Fall Creek, Place Road (CR 480), Jasper, Lane County, OR", 11 photos, 6 data pages, 1 photo caption page