{"nrhp_refnum":"76001516","name":"Christman Covered Bridge","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"1.5 mi. NW of Eaton on SR 12","address_restricted":false,"city":"Eaton","county":"Preble County","state":"OH","lat":39.77032642800003,"lon":-84.65545852899999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-10-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-span wooden covered bridge carrying the Eaton-New Hope Road (county road 12) over Seven Mile Creek northwest of Eaton, Preble County, Ohio. It was built in 1895 on the Childs truss plan by Evrett S. Sherman.","why_significant":"It is a rare, late example of a Childs truss covered bridge, a type Sherman is said to have been the only builder to use. It was among the many spans he built in Preble County after the storm of 1886. The nomination also credits it as an outstanding example of Sherman's skill and of the county's maintenance.","narrative":"Seven Mile Creek is crossed northwest of Eaton, Ohio, by a one-span covered bridge built in 1895 and known as the Christman Bridge. It is an 11-panel Childs truss, 100 feet long overall with an 84-foot clear span, vertical board siding, a metal roof, cut blue limestone abutments and projecting portals. Builder Evrett S. Sherman moved to Preble County in 1886, after a great storm destroyed many bridges, and built at least twenty covered bridges there. The Childs truss, patented in 1846, is a rare type that uses iron rods as counterbraces, and the nomination says Sherman was the only person to use it. This bridge was his next-to-last and a late date for covered bridge construction in Ohio. It is named for Solomon Christman, a local landowner who ran a sawmill downstream. Repairs over the years include new floor beams and stirrups in the 1920s, new lower chords in 1960-61, and an aluminum roof added in 1961.","period_of_significance":"1895","architect_builder":"Evrett S. Sherman","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by Preble County and in use as a bridge; described as having received excellent maintenance and presenting much the same outward appearance as always.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.83264-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/76001516.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001516/ffeabf013e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001516/ffeabf013e-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Christman_Covered_Bridge,_eastern_portal.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Christman_Covered_Bridge,_eastern_portal.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71991059","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christman_Covered_Bridge","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5111243"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/preble-county/christman-covered-bridge-76001516/"}