The Black (Pugh's Mill) Covered Bridge 11-9
Posted by: 
Web-ling
N 39° 31.404 W 084° 44.116
16S E 694663 N 4377310
Quick Description: A covered bridge on the north side of Oxford, Ohio
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 11/9/2006 8:07:28 AM
Waymark Code: WMY4D
Views: 92
Long Description:
Text : Side A
One of the few remaining covered bridges in southwestern Ohio and
the only one in Butler County on its original site, this bridge was
built in 1868-1869 to give access to a saw and grist mill owned by
James B. Pugh on Four Mile (Tallawanda) Creek. The wooden frame
three-story mill had a 16-foot overshot water wheel to power it.
Pugh's Mill ceased operation after two decades. The name of the
span gradually changed to Black Bridge, likely because there was a
white covered bridge downstream near present State Route 73. The
Oxford Museum Association assumed stewardship of the Black Bridge
in 1976 as part of the American Bicentennial celebration. Placed on
the National Register of Historic Places in 1975, it was restored
and rededicated in 2000.
Text : Side B
One of the longest and most impressive of Ohio's covered bridges,
the Black (Pugh's Mill) Bridge was built in 1868-1869 by master
builders Bandin, Butin, and Bowman. It is unique for its
combination of two truss types "Childs and Long" within a single
structure. Originally a cambered (arched) single span of 209 feet
with a roadway width of 18 feet, it was modified in 1869 with the
inclusion of a central pier under it for additional support. The
trusses were then remodeled by replacing some of the wooden
diagonals with iron rods to enable the builders to lower the bridge
down onto the pier by backing off the nuts on the ends of the rods,
thus eliminating the camber and forming two spans instead of
one.
County
Butler
Directions
Corso Road off St Rt 732
Category(s)
Industry (IND), Transportation (TRA)
Keyword(s)
"Mills", "Bridges"
Sponsor(s)
Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The Longaberger Company, the Oxford
Museum Association, and The Ohio Historical Society
Year
2000
Condition
New