The wooden covered bridge in Pont Chrétien, which is the only one in France, was built to allow 200 Italians who were working on the Paris - Toulouse railway tunnel to cross the river Bouzanne in order to get to and from their camp each day. Until then the crossing had been made by boat, and in April 1847, had cost the lives of 9 of the workers when their boat was swept away by a flood. The covering of the bridge was appreciated by the workers as it gave shelter while they were eating their meals.
Bridges Between participants.
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Bridges Between, bridge, covered bridge, Pont Chrétien.
Thank you for telling me why they put a roof on a bridge! I bet the workers loved it. It made a kind of double-purpose bridge. Nice lighting of the inside of the bridge.
ReplyDeleteWhat a strange brigde :-) Like a house over it, nice on rainy dags :-))
ReplyDeletenever ever seen enything like this in our country Norway, thanks for showing ous.
Thanks for all those great photos from France. I don't always have time to comment but I always appreciate your pictures as I find them so evocative.
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool bridge. Thanks for sharing :-)
ReplyDeleteI always associate this sort of bridge with parts of America - or maybe avalanche areas. It's lovely to see this and learn its history.
ReplyDeletenice one..
ReplyDeleteAn unusual bridge, but nice, thank you for telling!
ReplyDeleteNeat bridge. I liked the inside shot as well.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Velu
Thanks to you all. Yes, it's unusual, though not so unusual in the USA, as Dragonstar says. Remember "The Bridges of Madison County"? A dual purpose bridge as Rune says!
ReplyDeleteIf I'd noticed quite how much it was sagging in the middle I might not have ventured inside!
Well, I will have to respectfully disagree with Dragonstar. I think it would be very unusual indeed to find a covered bridge over the river Bouzanne in America. I may be wrong. Sometimes I am.
ReplyDeleteWhat? You mean you don't have a Bouzanne in America? I am stunned.
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat connection! Love learning about history too. Stop by and see my different bridge.
ReplyDeletePaulie
Beautiful photos. I'm really enjoying your blog.
ReplyDeleteChristine
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