Covered Bridges of Alabama

by Wil Elrick, Kelly Kazek

Overview

With fewer than a thousand remaining in the United States, the covered bridges of Alabama are an important relic of the paths our ancestors took.

Alabama's covered bridges are reminiscent of a more romantic time, when people rode in horse-drawn buggies and couples stole kisses beneath their roofs. But they are also keepers of history - structures built by former slaves and Civil War soldiers. Such places are steeped in legend, including tales of ghostly children and the hanging of a sheriff turned outlaw. Just eleven historic covered bridges survive in Alabama - the oldest dating to the 1850s - but dozens of more recently constructed spans dot the landscape. Wil Elrick and Kelly Kazek provide photos and detailed information on more than fifty Alabama bridges, reveal the fate of the state's lost bridges and delve into the haunting legends surrounding these nostalgic structures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467140768
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	10/15/2018
Series:	Landmarks
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	1,015,139
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Kelly Kazek is a journalist, humor columnist and blogger. She is the author of nine other books, including two humor collections. She has won more than 180 state and national press awards and twice served as president of the Alabama Associated Press Media Editors. She lives in Huntsville, Alabama, with her husband, Wil Elrick. They travel Alabama's backroads together, seeking out quirky history, and have coauthored two books.



Wil Elrick hails from Guntersville in the northeastern part of Alabama. He is a writer and "weirdologist" who loves telling stories, whether as a tour guide to historic Huntsville or with friends around a campfire. He can often be found "off the beaten path" researching historical, weird or unusual tales. He lives in Huntsville, Alabama, with his wife, Kelly Kazek, with whom he has coauthored two books.

Table of Contents

Preface 11

Acknowledgements 15

Why Are Bridges Covered? 17

Alabama's Covered Bridge Trail and Fall Festivals 21

Horace King: From Slave to Renowned Bridge Builder 28

Legends About Covered Bridges 35

The Hanging at Alamuchee Bridge 39

Miller Bridge Was Once Longest in State 43

Was This Bridge a Civil War Crossing? 45

Rural Studio's Unique Covered Bridge and House 47

Alabama's Lost Covered Bridges 50

Gristmills and Covered Bridges Make Picturesque Pairs 63

Types of Covered Bridges 73

Record-Breaking Bridges and Other Trivia 84

Tales of Hauntings at Alabama's Covered Bridges 88

Bridges Documented by the Historic American Buildings Survey 95

These Families Built Their Own Covered Bridges 101

Nationwide Covered Bridge Festivals 105

Scenic Covered Bridge Tours Across the Country 107

Preserving the Nation's and Alabama's Covered Bridges 109

List of Alabama's Existing Covered Bridges 116

Afterword: A Personal Plea Wil Elrick 139

Bibliography 141

Index 149

About the Authors 155

Editorial Reviews

"Wil Elrick and Kelly Kazek are historians who have made their avocation their concrete pursuit. Speakers, authors, and indeed in Kazek's case a writer for Al.com, both are respected, detail oriented pursuers of often weird truth. Carefully researched, with clever writing and engaging commentary, you'll enjoy this book. You'll even see where you can go to see these romantic structures. And you'll find out why they were really built! " Decatur Daily

From the Publisher