Wetumpka's Bridges

Wetumpka's Bridges. . , In 1834, the Wetumpka Toll Bridge Co. built the first of four bridges spanning the Coosa River at this site. It was destroyed in a flood in 1844. A second toll bridge was completed the same year by John Godwin whose slave, Horace King, designed and supervised construction of this covered bridge. Emancipated in 1846, King built numerous bridges in the South and his services were much in demand by the CSA during the Civil War. After the war, he was elected to the state legislature twice by the citizens of Russell Co., Toll charges for the new bridge were 5 cents for pedestrians or $1 per month for unlimited passage. Passage to church was free. Since the wagon gate closed at 9PM, an extra charge of 25 cents was due the gatekeeper if he was called to open the gate. , Three lighted lanterns hanging from the rafters were the last things seen of the bridge as it washed away in the flood of March 1886. A ferry operated while an iron bridge was built by the Southern Bridge Co. of Birmingham in 1887. By 1927, bridge deterioration led to a joint $177,440 state-county project resulting in the construction of the fourth bridge in 1931. Denmark native Edward Houk designed the graceful Bibb Graves Bridge, named for then-Governor Graves. The bridge became the picturesque centerpiece for the “City of Natural Beauty.”