
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
A covered bridge on the north side of Oxford, Ohio
Waymark Code: WMY4D
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 11/09/2006
Views: 106
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
Marker Number: 11-9
 County: Butler
 Significance of Location: Building or House
 Bicentenial Mark: no
 Website address: [Web Link]
 Additional Coordinate: Not Listed
 Additional Coordinate description: Not listed

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