Thorpe Ford Covered Bridge

Thorpe Ford Covered Bridge, northeast of Rosedale, Indiana, was built in 1912 by Joseph A. Britton as a single-span Burr Arch Truss bridge at a crossing named for the Thorpe family. Local tradition ties its construction to county commissioner J. M. May, whose search for a shortcut helped spur the project. After completion, the road became an important link between Terre Haute and Crawfordsville and gained the nickname Ben Hur Highway. Circus elephants and other animals also crossed here en route to winter quarters in Peru. Though later paved, the route declined after U.S. Highway 41 opened, and the bridge was condemned by 1960.

Indiana · United States