Crabtree Creek (Hoffman) Covered Bridge

Location:
From I-5 at Albany take Highway 226 (US Route 20) (exit 233) east to Crabtree Drive. Exit the highway and travel to the town of Crabtree. From Crabtree travel north on Hungry Hill Drive for approximately 1 mile.

Background:
This covered bridge spans Crabtree Creek one mile northeast of the town of Crabtree. Both the town and the creek were named for John Crabtree, who settled in the area in 1845.

Gothic style windows grace this structure, instead of the usual open Linn County truss design.

The portal design, originally rounded when the bridge was constructed, was enlarged and squared to allow passage of larger loads. The upper chords show signs of being shaped by hand and as most bridge crews in 1936 had yet to use power tools, logs were often cut nearby.

Shaping of the chord timbers was done with hand adzes prior to being placed across the stream.

The roofed river crossing was built by Lee Hoffman following State Highway Department specifications.