Local covered bridges topic for HPS annual meeting March 16

Kurt Garner

All are invited to the Heritage Preservation Society of Putnam County’s (HPS) annual meeting on Thursday, March 16 at 6 p.m. at the Putnam County Museum, 1105 N. Jackson St., Greencastle.

As detailed in an article that ran in the BannerGraphic in February, the organization has engaged Kurt W. Garner to submit nine covered bridges in Putnam County for consideration to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. He will be the featured speaker at the event.

These unique structures give character to the local landscape and even a sense of identity, as this area is often referred to as “Covered Bridge Country.” Considering that at one time there were as many as 12,000 in the U.S. and now they number closer to 1,000, these are precious artifacts indeed.

Putnam County is home for nine such bridges. In addition to prestige and publicity, inclusion in the National Register would grant the bridges some protection and eligibility for certain funding. The talk will be an opportunity to learn more about these gems in our backyard.

In addition to securing the contractor to complete the nine separate nominations for the covered bridges to the National Register, HPS has been involved this past year in finding preservation solutions for a number of historic buildings including the Freight Depot and the CSX RR Depot. Also, walking brochures are being developed for a number of small communities in the county which were recently honored with National Register historic status, including Roachdale, Russellville, Bainbridge and Cloverdale.

The mission of HPS is to promote interest in the history of Putnam County and to facilitate the identification and restoration of its structural heritage. Supporting and joining the organization is as quick as a click away at www.HeritagePreservationSociety.org.