Bowsher Ford Covered Bridge

The Bowsher Ford Covered Bridge was built in 1915 under a contract awarded to Elmer Garrard, who, lacking bridge-building expertise of his own, hired Eugene Britton, son of the celebrated builder Joseph A. Britton, to actually direct and construct the span; Eugene is generally credited as its true builder. The single-span Burr Arch Truss bridge crosses Mill Creek about two miles northwest of Tangier and takes its name from the Bowsher family, who owned land at the historic ford it replaced. That same year, the Britton family was remarkably busy across the region, simultaneously overseeing construction of the Jeffries Ford Covered Bridge over Big Raccoon Creek in Parke County as well as the Rolling Stone and Sharpe covered bridges in neighboring Putnam County. The bridge retains a traditional wood shingle roof, and a full-scale replica of a covered bridge, built later as a farm shed, stands about a quarter mile southwest of the historic structure, a charming echo of the original. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 22, 1978, as part of the Parke County Covered Bridges Multiple Property Submission, the Bowsher Ford Covered Bridge remains standing today in rural Liberty Township, a testament to the Britton family's multi-generational contribution to the county's bridge-building legacy.