Some Fine Examples of Bridge Preservation

Rommels Mill Bridge, Richland County, 2007

In 1913, this bridge replaced a covered bridge that was swept away in a massive flood. An adjacent 19th century water powered gristmill survived the flood but is succumbing to “time” and is in a state of deterioration.

Richland Engineering Ltd., of Mansfield, designed the rehab work. Ohio Bridge Corp. was the contractor. Work began in the summer of 2005 by disassembling the truss, hauling it to the Ohio Bridge Corp. yard where the deteriorated sections where removed and replaced with new members. The entire bridge was galvanized, then returned to the project site and re-erected. A single lane concrete deck was poured. It was reopened in May 2006 as a 100% load legal one-lane bridge.


Oxford Road Bridge, Hamilton County (Photo Brian Rhodes, 2007)

The respective counties deserve recognition for these two fine recent examples of historic bridge preservation. The off-site reconstruction was done by US Bridge, Cambridge, Ohio.