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DECATUR, TWP.- Nestled next to a modern bridge over the west branch of the Little Hocking River is a faded red reminder of the not-so-distant past of Washington County.
The Root Covered Bridge, built in 1888 and in use until 1975, was erected to service the town of Root, founded by a family bearing that name.
Forms provided by the Ohio History Connection and used to certify the structure on the National Register of Historic Places explains that the bridge was constructed to replace an often-impassable ford upstream.
Built using the Long truss plan popularized in the mid-1800’s, the Root Bridge is one of 10 such bridges left in Ohio and the first Washington County Bridge to earn a National Register of Historic Places title, according to the National Register Information System.
Homer Bigler, 68, of Decatur Township, lives on property once owned by Moody Root, a relative of William Root, who settled on the land in the 1700s. Bigler is happy to display pictures of the past, explaining that the land around his home was once used to raise sheep.
The town of Root even had a post office, general store and a grist and saw mill but all that’s gone now.
“The store was open until the 1980’s,” said Robert Root Jr.,72, of Parkersburg, who is a distant cousin of Moody Root.
Only the bridge remains, and its care has fallen to the Qualey Covered Bridge Club. Locals founded the organization to save the bridge when a new one was constructed.
Robert Root Jr. was once its president and says he remembers gatherings to paint and care for the bridge now.
The sheep are on the land around the historic site and it’s mostly woods now, save the yards and gardens maintained by homeowners.
“I keep an eye on the bridge,” Bigler says. “Sometimes I come down and talk to people who come to see it and I’ve mowed the grass a few times.”
A small sign indicates the building’s status as part of a covered bridge tour and a wooden plaque at the site lists the date of construction and the “Howe Construction Company” once located near Decatur.
“The historical society was going to put up a marker if they can get the money,” Robert Root Jr. said.
Erin Radcliff, 32, of Marietta, and a volunteer at the Washington County Historical Society says no such plans are currently in place but did offer some insight into its uses other than transportation.
“They called them ‘kissing bridges,'” Radcliff said, displaying a document about young lovers and romantic walks through the structures.
Robert Root Jr. chuckled at the mention.
“You stopped and kissed every time you drove through it,” he said.
Graffiti now marks the insides of the structure, though Bigler says he doesn’t see miscreants often and is quick to chase them off.
The general condition of the wooden span is good, though Robert Root Jr. says a new roof is needed.
“The Amish said they could do it for about $800,” he said. “We got ahold of them because they know those type of buildings.”
He said no plans to make repairs are currently under way and explained that the Qualey Covered Bridge Club is out of funds.