Bridges of Iowa - Polk County

Owens Covered Bridge.  11/1/2019 dwm photo

I lived in Des Moines for three years.  While a student at Drake, I did a number of things and visited several attractions.

Maybe I wasn't paying close attention or had covered bridges on my mind... but I never heard about one in a city park.

The Owens Bridge was moved from its former outpost in the southwest part of Polk County in 1967.

Before the move, the bridge had sat unused 28 years after the river it crossed and the road that crossed it were re-routed in 1939.

An autumn scene framed by
the Owen's Bridge. 11/1/19 (dwm)

Before that year - the bridge crossed an old channel of the North River near Carlisle from its construction in 1887.  That's 52 years of service.

After its reason for existing ended, the land was owned by a Mr. Owen.  The Polk County Conservation Board bought it for $1.

Mr. Owen's land was later flooded by a large water project which created the Red Rock Reservoir a few years later.

Owen Bridge in Easter Lake Park. 11/1/2019 (dwm)

Its home is now Easter Lake Park where it crosses a finger of the lake which allows a beautiful bike and pedestrian trail to complete its circle route around the water.

The dollar and the money to move and preserve it were worth it.

Owen Covered Bridge
Built:  1887 over a channel of the North River
Style:  Howe through Truss
Length: 100 feet

See more covered bridges by following the link.