You Must Be Trippin'

The Storied Bridges of Madison County

June 9 2010 by Claudia Kunkel
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It's hard to have an appreciation for history when you're a kid. Sundays were always a day of rest for my family which always translated into all of us piling into the backseat of the family car and taking a "Sunday drive". Most of that time was spent with my head buried in a book and barely glancing out the window until we pulled back into our driveway at the end of the day. I'm pretty sure we covered every square inch of Iowa during those drives. Looking back, I wish I had looked out the window more than I did.

It wasn't until years later on a trip back to Iowa and after the movie "The Bridges of Madison County" came out, that I decided I should take a Sunday drive to Madison County. This time around, I was driving and my mother was in the passenger seat. I had come full circle.

We headed out for Winterset, the county seat of Madison County, just 30 minutes from the state capitol of Des Moines and just 90 minutes from where I grew up. I was secretly hoping that Clint Eastwood or Meryl Streep might still be around town, having fallen in love with the idyllic countryside and quaint towns. But, the real purpose of the drive was to learn a little more about these storied bridges and see them up close.

Our starting point was the beautiful town of Winterset, which is the birthplace of the Delicious Apple and famed actor John Wayne. His home still stands and tours are offered. Winterset is also home to two of the world's best quilters and whose company is based in Winterset. The town also has an old-fashioned town square anchored by an 1876 Courthouse and surrounded by cafes, coffee shops and quaint shops. It really is a step back in time.

After a leisurely lunch in one of the local cafes, we took our map and headed out to see as many of the 6 remaining bridges that we could squeeze into one afternoon. There were originally 19 and 5 of the 6 remaining bridges are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As it turns out, it is really difficult to see all of the bridges remaining as they are spread out all over Madison County. So, we narrowed down our list to just a few, but quite frankly, after you've seen one, two or three, you've pretty much covered it.

The covered bridges today are considered historic landmarks, but what was the idea behind covering the bridges? Some of the explanations I ran across were they were covered so the farm animals wouldn't stampede as they crossed the rivers; to keep snow off the bridge, to keep the wooden planks dry or my favorite, a place to meet your secret lover and steal a kiss. The more practical reason for covering the bridges was it protected the trusses from getting wet and prevented the bridge from collapsing and extending the life of the bridge. Having lived through quite a few winters in Iowa, this one makes the most sense to me.

Here are the bridges that are scattered around Madison County and their history according to this informative website covering the remaining bridges:

• Cedar Covered Bridge was originally built over Cedar Creek north of Winterset, Iowa in 1883, by Benton Jones The 76' covered bridge was moved to its present location over the same creek in 1921. Cedar Creek Covered Bridge was destroyed by Arson in 2002 and rebuilt in 2004. Cedar Covered Bridge is the only Madison County covered bridge that vehicles are still permitted to drive across.


• Hallowell Covered Bridge in Madison County. Holliwell Covered Bridge was featured in Clint Eastwood's The Bridges of Madison County movie. Hallowell Bridge (1880), at 122 feet, is the longest remaining Madison County covered bridge. It remains in its original site over the Middle River southeast of Winterset, Iowa.


• The Imes Covered Bridge is just a mile off of Interstate 35 at St. Charles, Iowa. Imes Covered Bridge is oldest of the surviving Madison County covered bridges. The Imes Bridge was built in 1870. It was moved to a spot over Clinton Creek southwest of Hanley, Iowa in 1887 and finally moved to its current location near I-35 in 1977.


• The Roseman Covered Bridge was built in 1883 by Benton Jones and is in its original location. It is also the bridge Robert Kincaid is looking for when he stops at Francesca Johnson's for directions and the location where Francesca leaves her note inviting him to dinner in the Robert James Waller's novel The Bridges of Madison County. Roseman Covered Bridge has also been called the haunted bridge because in 1892 two sheriff's posses trapped a county jail escapee in the bridge. Legend says that the man cried out, rose up straight through the roof of the bridge and disappeared.


• Hogback Covered Bridge (1884) is 97 feet long, and is in its original location in a valley north of Winterset. It was in use up until the mid 1990s, when a modern bridge bypassed it. Hogback Covered Bridge gets its name from the limestone ridge which forms the west end of the valley.

If you ever find yourself anywhere near Madison County in Iowa, I suggest you take a "Sunday drive" and visit the remaining covered bridges. They really are beautiful and represent such an important part of our history and how far we've come with our engineering expertise. Just remember to look up and look around-you might be missing something worth seeing!

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