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Colville, Bourbon County

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Inventory Number: KY/17-09-03x
County: Bourbon County
Township:
Town/Village: Ruddel's Mills
Bridge Name: Colville
Crosses: Hinkston Creek
Truss type: Multiple Kingpost
Spans: 1
Length: 120' or 130'
Roadway Width: 18'
Built: 1877
Builder: Jacob Bower
When Lost: 2002
Cause: Rebuilt/Replaced
Latitude: N38 19.49
Longitude: W084 12.19
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: 3.0 miles west-northwest of US68 and south edge of Millersburg on KY1893, then 1.0 mile right on Colville Rd. Northwest of Millersburg.

Colville Bridge, Ruddel's Mills, Bourbon County, KY Built 1877 Replaced 2002
Todd Clark Collection

Colville Bridge, Ruddel's Mills, Bourbon County, KY Built 1877 Replaced 2002
Bill Eichelberger Photo, October 1987

Colville Bridge, Ruddel's Mills, Bourbon County, KY Built 1877 Replaced 2002
Traugott Keller Photograph, March 7, 1953, NSPCB Archives

Comments:
The earlier covered bridge at this location was built by Jacob Bower in 1877. It was restored by his son Louis Bower in 1913 and raised to its present height by Jacob’s grandson "Stock" Bower in 1937 after being damaged by an overloaded truck. During the 1937 renovations, 1¼ inch diameter iron rods were added to the four panels at each end of the bridge. The rods were added to each panel diagonally passing through the center of the kingpost’s diagonal braces. This makes the multiple kingpost structure appear as a Child’s truss. The Cabin Creek Bridge has a similar truss configuration. In 1972, the bridge was damaged by a truck and subsequently closed for nearly a year. On December 30, 1974, the Colville Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The earlier bridge was damaged by floodwaters reaching about 1/3 of the way up the side of the bridge on March 1, 1997. The same flood washed away the Switzer Bridge in Franklin County. The bridge was closed for nearly two years before being dismantled, removed and rebuilt. It was rebuilt and reopened to traffic in the summer of 2001. 12-panel truss.

Sources:
White, Vernon. Covered Bridges, Focus on Kentucky, 1985, pages 41-44
National Society For the Preservation of Covered Bridges. Covered Bridge Topics, Volume VI, No. 1, March 1948, page 10
Database of Kentucky covered bridges compiled by Robert W. M. Laughlin
Laughlin, Robert W. M. and Melissa C. Jurgensen. Covered Bridges of Kentucky, 2007, pages 67 & 68