These views of the interior of the bridge show the Town lattice truss
system which supports the bridge. Almost all of these massive beams are
the original beams from when the bridge was constructed in 1885.
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Watson Mill Covered Bridge was constructed in 1885 by W. (Washington) W. King. He was
the son of Horace King who was also a famous covered bridge builder in
the South who built many bridges across the Chattahoochee River. Horace
King was also a former slave who was so good at his craft in carpentry
and so well respected that his former slave owner made it possible for
him to be a free man. When Washington built Watson Mill Bridge, the cost
of construction was just over $3,000. Most of the lattice work on the
inside of the bridge is original. At the bottom of these massive timbers
numbers can still be seen which were used to show the construction crew
where each piece was to go when constructing the bridge. The bridge was
renovated in 1970 when the park service took over its care. The roof and
weather boarding were replaced during the renovation. The lattice system
is also called a truss system and it supports the bridge. This particular
kind of truss system, called the Townlattice system, is typical of many
covered bridge truss systems because it is so strong.
The main question that people want to know the answer to is "Why
were bridges built as covered bridges?" There is only one true answer
and it is a very practical one. Covered bridges were built so the supporting
timbers on the inside, the parts that actually support the bridge, would
last a long time. As can be seen, this concept did work well as the Watson
Mill Bridge is over 100 years old. The major reason these bridges were
constructed out of wood is that it was the most economical and available
material at the time they were constructed. Now there have been other
stories that suggest other reasons for covered bridges being covered,
such as the one that says "horses think they are going into a barn
and not crossing a bridge over the river - therefore they aren't afraid
to make the crossing." And, of course, the old saying, "because
folks could get out of the rain."
These bridges are truly relics of the past. At one time there were over
200 covered bridges in Georgia. Now there are less than 15. Most of them
went by the wayside for progress - when a new "modern" concrete
bridge was constructed, the old covered bridge was often disassembled
and disposed of as it was replaced or sometimes left in place beside the
"new" bridge and neglected to simply fall to the forces of the
natural elements and time.
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