Weddle Bridge

The Weddle Bridge now stands in Sankey Park in Sweet Home, though it began life in 1937 spanning Thomas Creek near Scio, roughly seven miles from its current location. Named for a nearby pioneer farming family (and known locally at times as the Devaney Bridge, for another early resident), the 120-foot Howe truss structure carried rural traffic for decades until a concrete replacement bypassed it in 1987 and county officials scheduled it for demolition. The bridge's fate became a local cause célèbre when a resident chained himself to the demolition bulldozer in protest, galvanizing public support for its preservation. The resulting outcry helped push then-state Senator Mae Yih to champion legislation creating the Oregon Covered Bridge Program, and the Weddle Bridge became the very first structure to receive a grant under it. In 1989-90, the Cascade Forest Resource Center carefully relocated and rebuilt the bridge over Ames Creek in Sankey Park, where it was closed again for emergency repairs in 2005 and reopened using proceeds from the Oregon Jamboree music festival and community donations. Because of its relocation, it was formally removed from the National Register of Historic Places in 1989 despite having been listed there in 1979 at its original site. Today it serves only pedestrians, hosting weddings and community gatherings in its adopted park setting.