Eugene Covered Bridge
Vermillion County, Eugene Township, near Eugene. Built 1873, 180 ft. long. Spans the Big Vermilion River on its original abutments; closed to vehicles in 1974, now pedestrian-only.
The Eugene Covered Bridge (County Bridge No. 75) was built in 1873 by master bridge builder Joseph J. Daniels of Rockville, commissioned by Vermillion County commissioners to replace an earlier, unsafe span at the same crossing. Daniels reused the existing stone abutments for his 180-foot, single-span Burr Arch Truss structure, 16 feet wide, over the Big Vermilion River (also written Vermillion River) at the town of Eugene in Eugene Township. The bridge carried the town's main road traffic for more than a century, linking the small river community to surrounding farmland. In 1974, after 101 years of vehicular service, a parallel modern concrete bridge was constructed alongside it, and the historic span was closed to motor vehicles and preserved for pedestrian use only. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 10, 1994 (NRHP reference #94000585), documented in a nomination prepared by Arthur Bonwell. The bridge remains standing today at its original site, and is maintained as a local landmark and photographic attraction along the Wabash River valley near Indiana State Road 63.
