Illinois Covered Bridges - Young

Young Covered Bridge over South Kinnikinnick Creek.
4/6/2019 dwm photo

The Young Covered Bridge joins the list of "most difficult" in my quest to capture historic bridges.

It wasn't finding the bridge that was hard, it was getting to it.

A list of covered bridges in the Land of Lincoln locate it on private land in Boone County.

That isn't terribly fall from where we live, so I reached the owner last fall to ask permission to photograph the bridge.

The overflowing S. Kinnikinnick Creek.
10/6/18 dwm photo

He and his wife were gracious in giving me directions to the bridge. The morning of October 6 I headed out to collect this bridge and the Amerock bridge in nearby Rockford.

I reached the property, but heavy rains last fall made it impossible to safely shoot the bridge.  My weekly blog the next Saturday recounted the trip and a shot of what I thought might be the bridge.

The owners said I could try again.  In early April I called again for a second chance and to see what the creek was doing.  I heard good news, that the creek was within its banks.

If you look closely at the photo (right) from last fall, there is a small blue bench in the center of the picture.  That same bench is just to the left of the pile of branches in the photo below.

Big change!

This time I grabbed the camera and walked across the grass toward the area where I expected to find it.

My car is parked a good 100 feet further down the path than
where I stood October 6 (photo right)    4/6/2019 dwm photo

My timing was good because leaves weren't out.  As it came into view it was no wonder I didn't see it from the vantage point I had last fall.

Just a beautiful part of the landscape now, the approach is framed by old stones and a number of trees posted on either side.

The north portal of the Young Covered Bridge.  4/6/19 (dwm)

It fits.

Last fall the owners told me the bridge once crossed a creek before it joined the Rock River.  It was bought and moved 50 or 60 years ago.

You might think it was built here, that's how natural it looks.  Instead of buggies and wagons - it helps walkers, joggers, and perhaps cross country skiers get over the creek.

This bridge was built in 1890 and appears to use the Smith Truss type 4.

The X's down each side without a center beam between
each X marks a Smith Truss type 4.  4/6/2019 (dwm)

The Old Red and Wheeling bridges in Gibson County, Indiana use this style as does the Cataract Falls bridge in Owen County, Indiana.  All of those bridges were built in the 1870s.

The south side of the creek offered more unobstructed views of the bridge, and that's where I spent most of my time.

There are seven other covered bridges in Illinois on my list.  A few are quite a distance from Wisconsin, so it may take a few years to get them all.

According to a list of Illinois covered bridges by Dale J Travis - this is the 5th oldest covered bridge still standing in the state.  Some replicas of older ones stand in their place.

Without owner permission, this would have been impossible for me to collect since it is out of public view.  I appreciate them allowing me to see it.

Young Covered Bridge

Built:  1890

Style:  Smith Truss Type IV

Length:  75 feet over the S. Kinnikinnick Creek

See more covered bridges by following the link.

Upstream of the Young Covered Bridge.                                       April 6, 2019  dwm photo