Waldo Covered Bridge, Covered bridge in Talladega County, Alabama, US.
The Waldo Covered Bridge is a 115-foot (35 m) single-span covered bridge over Talladega Creek in Talladega County, Alabama. It combines Howe truss and Queen-post truss construction in wood and metal, and rests on two stone piers. Its WGCB number is 01-61-02.
The Waldo Covered Bridge was built in 1858 on an old Socopatoy Indian trail behind Riddle's Mill, a grist mill later converted into the Waldo Town Hall and then a restaurant. In April 1865 Wilson's Raiders, a Union cavalry group led by General James H. Wilson, used the bridge as an access route during the American Civil War. It was later opened to traffic, possibly for access to the nearby Riddle's Hole gold mine, which operated from 1840 through World War II, but the state condemned it in the 1960s and removed the approaches.
The bridge takes its name from the nearby town of Waldo, and is also called the Riddle Mill Covered Bridge after Riddle's Mill, a grist mill behind the bridge that later served as Waldo's town hall and then as a restaurant. The Old Mill Restaurant now owns the property, and visitors may walk the grounds with its permission.
The bridge is on private land and cannot be reached by the public; visitors may walk the grounds only with permission from the Old Mill Restaurant, which now operates under new ownership. The structure stands on its two stone piers with the approaches removed, so it is viewed from a distance rather than crossed.
The bridge is the only covered bridge in Alabama not being maintained, and it sits on its two original stone piers after its approaches were removed in the 1960s. It is also eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
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