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On a recent trip to Knights Ferry I found an old brochure about the covered bridge. Following is information gleaned from that brochure.  -JG

The covered bridge at Knights Ferry, California attracts many visitors to the Stanislaus River Parks system. With the number of authentic covered bridges in the United States declining to less than 900, the Knights Ferry bridge is one of only 12 remaining authentic covered bridges in California. It is over 130 years old, and boasts at being the longest covered bridge west of the Mississippi.

Relatively unscathed by time, the bridge stands much the same as it did when it opened for traffic on March 30, 1863. Although closed to vehicular traffic, the bridge continues to play an important role in the history and development of the surrounding community.

Historically important in its role during the rush for gold in the “lower mines” of the Stanislaus River, it was the economic cornerstone for those dependent on the flow of commerce along the Stockton-Sonora Road through the Central Valley and surrounding foothills.

The covered bridge that now stands across the Stanislaus River at Knights Ferry was not the first bridge or crossing constructed there. Originally, the crossing had been a ferry built from an old whaling vessel by Dr. William Knight, and his partner James Vantine in 1848. The ferry was said to have been built to increase the business at their trading post, yet toll charges could run as high as $200 for a single crossing. By the end of 1849, however, Dr. Knight had been shot and killed in an argument, and a new partnership between John Dent and Vantine was established.

Dent, Vantine and Company replaced the old whaling boat ferry with a modern style ferry, and were issued a San Joaquin County ferry permit for $300. As businessmen, they reduced the toll charge to two dollars, hoping that the increased travel on the ferry would improve the patronage at their newly built restaurant and building boarding house at Knights Ferry. Captain Ulysses S. Grant, while visiting his brothers-in-law, earned from “fifty to one hundred dollars per day”. (It was during one of his visits that he was purported to have drawn the plans for the first bridge at the present site.)

In 1852, Vantine sold his holdings at the Dent and moved back to the East. Profiting from the increase in business from the growing population and prosperity in the are, the Dents agreed to finance the construction of David Locke’s millworks. With help from his brother Elbridge, David Locke completed the sawmill in 1854. by mid-January of the following year, the Lockes opened their highly profitable grist mill (the buildings still stand next to the bridge). To help ensure the success of the mill, the Lockes needed to guarantee the  flow of commerce over the Stockton-Sonora Road, and they accomplished this by purchasing the ferry from the Dents for the $26,000 on the first of November, 1865. The purchase price included the timber that had been cut previously for a  bridge that Dent and Vantine had been planning to build.

Although there was some discussions between Locke and the town’s business community on where the location should be, Locke won out.  In early 1857, construction began at the site of the current bridge, next to the mill.

Upon completion of the bridge, the ferry system was dismantled, and it was hoped that the new open-truss bridge would curtail the effects of the winter flooding on transportation, which had plagued the ferries. Up until the 1861-62 winter, the uncovered bridge had served well, and Knights Ferry’s population had grown continuously. As the community prospered, Locke entered into a partnership with other bridge and ferry owners, forming the Stanislaus Bridge and Ferry Company. He sold the bridge to the company in July 1858, but remained in authority of the Knights Ferry Bridge.

As warm unreasonable rain swept across the Sierra Nevada in early 1862, the previous month’s heavy snows melted. As the icy water from the Sierra Nevada joined with the Stanislaus, the height of the river began rising three to four feet per hour, peaking at a remarkable 35 feet above low water mark. As the sweeping water battered the homes and most of the businesses ion Knights Ferry, the bridge held fast.

However, the fate of the bridge had been sealed not from collapse, but from collision. The bridge at Two-Mile Bar, only a short distance up river, had been torn from its foundation. Pushed by the raging floodwater, it crashed into the Knights Ferry Bridge, crushing the truss supports and knocking it from its rock foundation. The bridge, the mill and the town lay in ruin.

Loss of the bridge was set at $20.000. Undaunted, the Stanislaus Bridge and Ferry Company set to work on a new bridge, a covered bridge that would set eight feet higher than its predecessor above the fiery river. Within the month as the floodwater subsided, the retired ferry was forced back into service, along with a new foot bridge. In March, actual construction of the covered bridge began, and fifteen months later, it would be open to traffic.

As stonemasons and metalsmiths were called into action, Locke himself collected the necessary timber to be used for the truss structures, Fir, pine and oak woods were all utilized, with linseed oil added for preservation and lubrication. Hundreds of other laborers converged on the area, as construction in and around the town proceeded. By May, 1864, the craftsmen had completed their work on the bridge that had been designed for low maintenance, large loads, and a long lifespan.

Along with the new bridge, came new toll rates. The county, acting on the request from the owners, set new charges. Tolls ranged from two cents for hogs or sheep, to five dollars for horse or mule teams. Rates were even set for circus animals which crossed the Stanislus in pursuit of a paying audience. Dromedaries (camels) were two dollars with all other undomesticated beasts set at a dollar (Elephants were the exception; they carried a three dollar toll charge.)

In 1869, Locke sold the controlling interest in the bridge to Thomas Roberts,a  prominent citizen of Knights Ferry. For the next few years, the bridge was a profitable enterprise, yet the popularity of the crossing would change as the neighboring communities of Modesto and Oakland grew. In 1871, the center of government for Stanislaus County relocated, moving from Knights Ferry to Modesto.

The Stockton-Visalia Railroad also added to the decline of Knights Ferry. The railroad had opted to build the depot at Oakland, bypassing Knights Ferry. As the center of transportation and commerce shifted, the flour mill (bought by David Tulloch in 1859) was sold, and a small room was used to house a single turbo generator. This generator was served by water brought down the hill in a penstock leading out of the old San Joaquin Ditch. The company, declining in importance as a producer of flour, was renamed the Stanislaus Water and Power Company on October 26, 1897. The power  plant stayed in operation until 1920 when  the New Melones Powerhouse began operations.

As the economic and political changes compiled, travel across the bridge allowed, and the public vocalized the need for a free bridge crossing. On November 12, 1884, the county purchased the bridge from Edwards for $7,000. They had agreed to pay lost toll charges of $ 126.83 from tolls not collected while the agreement was finalized.

Few modifications have been made to the bridge since it was built in 1863. The wooden rood was replaced with tin shortly after the county purchased the bridge in 1884.
The deck was repaired, and the sand that protected the decking was eventually replaced by asphalt.

New felloe guards were added to keep the wagon and auto traffic from hitting the trusses as they passed one another. In 1970, the chain-like fence was added to keep individuals from knocking the wooden sidings out and diving from the bridge.

With the load capacity of the bridge rated at 5 tons, the large trucks and autos strained the aging span, and in 1981,  county engineers spotted cracks in the support structures. The bridge was finally closed to vehicular traffic on the 2nd of June, 1981.

The Sacramento District Corps of Engineers received title to the Knights Ferry covered bridge on April 18, 1985. In addition to safeguarding the bridge under the National Historic Preservation Act, the Corps of Engineers operates and manages nine recreation areas along a 59-mile stretch of the Stanislau River.

Visitors can take a short walk from the Knights Ferry Information Center past the restored mill and mill office to the bridge, its length and dimension giving rise to the historic nature of the landmark. Massive beams loom overhead, while thousands of inch-thick planks lie on their side to form the deck, having allowed over 100 years of history to pass through.

Knights Ferry’s Covered Bridge Physical Information…

CONSTRUCTION START:  March 1862
CONSTRUCTION FINISHED: May 30, 1863
BUILDER:  Schuykill Construction Company
DESIGNER: Historically speculated to be U.S. Grant (design was originally used to construct 1857-58 bridge that was destroyed during the 1862 winter flood.)
TYPE: Howe double-intersection, although struss. Four span wood and wrought iron. Metal verticals in tension. Wood diagonals in compression.
FLOORING: Original deck built with 12 ft. Planks laid over eleven 3” x 12” x 20” stringers attached to the lower chords and floor beams. A one to four inch layer of sand and gravel was spread across the deck surface to protect the planking. Renovation between 1918-19 included replacing worn stringers, and installing a new deck of 1” x 4” x 16” planking, laid on side, laminated and surfaced with asphalt.
SIZE: Truss length………330 ft.
Span length………360 ft.
Outer height………20 ft.
Clearance………….12 ft.
Width………………18 ft.
Spans……………….44 ft. 0 in.
……………….96 ft. 6 in.
……………….80 ft. 6 in.
……………….136 ft. 0 in.
BUILDING COSTS: Construction cost was unknown. Appraised value in 1875 $14,000. Purchased in 1884 for $7,000 plus $128.36 in lost tolls.

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Foreclosures are less visible here in Oakdale. What’s going on? More people are listing without signs yet there are still a lot of homes on the market.