The original Hurricane Shoals Covered Bridge was completed on this site in 1882, spanning about 127 feet at a cost of $1,433. Vandals burned the old bridge in 1972, ending the use of a community landmark and transportation corridor that had served for nine decades, though portions of the original footings remain visible. Efforts then followed to develop the historic shoals as a county park. In 1994, work began to secure federal and local funding to rebuild the bridge and construct a history village. Key participants included the Tumbling Waters Society, the Hurricane Shoals Covered Bridge Committee, DOT board member and Commerce native Steve Reynolds, and state representative and county commissioner Pat Bell. Dr. Cecil Hammond, a retired UGA engineer, prepared the first working drawings for the new bridge. An "ISTEA" grant from the Georgia Department of Transportation supplied most of the project funding, and private donations and county funds also contributed to work that included bike paths and related improvements. Completed under the leadership of the Jackson County Board of Commissioners, with Harold Fletcher as chairman, the new bridge and bike paths were formally dedicated on Sept. 22, 2002, culminating an eight-year effort.