Sarto Old Iron Bridge over Bayou des Glaises in Avoyelles Parish was the first bridge in Louisiana placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The State Review Committee for the National Register of Historic Places in Baton Rouge first considered the bridge on November 21, 1989, during a presentation attended by Adam Ponthieu Sr., postmaster at Big Bend, Eleanor Blakewood Marshall, Marilyn B. Coco, secretary of La Commission des Avoyelles, and Carlos A. Mayeux Jr., president of La Commission des Avoyelles. On November 21, 1989, it was officially entered into the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. The State Review Committee for the Department of Historic Preservation recognized its statewide significance in transportation as an early example of a rare bridge type, noting that the steel truss swing bridge was a principal bridge type during the early 20th century and that only a few survive in Louisiana.
