Built in 1869 as a new river crossing designed to be high enough and strong enough after spring floods had destroyed earlier crossings, the Zumbrota Covered Bridge served for 63 years. In 1871, a roof and sidewalls were added to protect the wooden structure from the weather. A.J. Thatcher used the Ithiel Town lattice truss design, a system of interlocking triangles that provided strong support, and the bridge originally had no center support. The span is 120 feet and the width is 15 feet. In winter, snow was shoveled onto the bridge floor so teams of horses could haul sleighs across. As automobile traffic increased, a sign over the entrances warned of a $10 fine for driving faster than a walk across the bridge, and the town constable levied the fines. In 1932, the Minnesota State Department of Transportation declared the bridge too narrow for the flow of traffic and ordered its removal, but local citizens and the State of Minnesota paid to move it instead. William Henke used horses to move the bridge one mile to its new home at the Goodhue County Fairgrounds, for which he was paid $600.