The Red Covered Bridge in Princeton, Illinois received temporary repairs in time for winter. In November of 2023, the bridge was struck by a semi-truck traveling southbound on County Road 1950 E.
A Bureau County Historical Society representative told Our Quad Cities News about the next steps for the bridge.
“The Illinois Department of Transportation was putting up structural beams to hold it all together and keep it together,” said Lex Poppens, the executive director of the Bureau County Historical Society. “What we’ve done at the history center since then is try and keep the story elevated.”
At a Princeton Area Chamber of Commerce Business after Hours session, Poppens explained the future of the Red Covered Bridge. I-DOT had recently put temporary structural beams in the bridge, before the winter season hit. The story of the bridge has is so important to Princeton community members that Illinois state representatives are starting to take notice.
“On Dec. 13th, Landmarks Illinois came down and we got a meting with representatives with Ryan Spain’s office and Win Stoller’s office,” Poppens said. “A gentleman from Landmarks Illinois made it very clear that we had made an impression in Springfield and that they were observing this bridge.”
Poppens looks back on the crash from November, and is thankful that more damage wasn’t done.
“As the truck went through, and the roof of her cabin began collapsing, all of that splitting stopped midway through,” Poppens said. “And for them to be able to put the roof back together, close to what it was, is a good sign.”
Bureau County is waiting on I-DOT’s decision whether landmark will be fully repaired. “We want very much for there to be a restoration, because it is an iconic bridge,” Poppens said. As for the full restoration of the Red Covered Bridge, the Bureau County Historical Society will support any efforts in restoring the bridge, in any way that they can.
Our Quad Cities News spoke with Paul Wappel, a representative for I-DOT. “In mid-December, IDOT made temporary repairs to secure the bridge from snow during the winter, which included protecting the roof and stabilizing the structure,” he said. “The department ultimately arrived at the recommendation to close the bridge with proper traffic control devices while a more complete structural evaluation of the bridge to assess the extent of the damages and possible repair options continued. This process can take several months so we won’t have any final recommendation on repairs or restoration measures until a full assessment is completed.”
The timeline for any repair or restoration project of the historic Red Covered Bridge also will depend on coordination with the State Historic Preservation Office.
