Skip to main content

Zehnder's Holzbrücke (Zehnder's Wooden Bridge)

By


Zehnder's Holzbrücke (German for Wooden Bridge) is a covered bridge located on the Cass River on Covered Bridge Lane in the city of Frankenmuth, Michigan.  This structure was completed in 1979 and hauled into place by a team of oxen during 1980.  Unlike many modern covered bridges, the structure is not a facade and is constructed fully of wooden materials.  The span was installed promote tourism in Frankenmuth and provide access to the lands own by the Bavarian Inn south of the Cass River. 




Part 1; the history of Zehnder's Holzbrücke

Zehnder's Holzbrücke (German for wooden bridge) is a structure located on Covered Bridge Lane along the Cass River in the city of Frankenmuth River.  The structure is currently part of the Bavarian Inn complex.  Eddie (the Zehnder's of Frankenmuth family) and William Zehnder (Bavarian Inn family) originally began to explore the prospects of installing a covered bridge in 1962.  Both brothers owned portions of land along the eastern half of the Cass River.  The purpose of a new bridge was to serve as a tourist attraction and expand the parking capacity for the Bavarian Inn south of the Cass River.  

By 1979 the Zehnder brothers hired Milton Grade which was one of the last construction firms which specialized in building authentic covered bridges.  The 239-foot-long structure was completed during 1979 but had to installed at the Cass River.  Beginning during 1980 a team of oxen was used to pull the structure into place on the Cass River.  The bridge was dedicated on September 9, 1980. 

In 1985 the first phase of the Bavarian Inn Lodge complex completed east of the Cass River.  Much of the attractions south of the river were either built or purchased by Eddie Zehnder's family during the remaining balance of the 1980s.  During 2015 ownership of Zehnder's Holzbrücke was transferred to Frankenmuth Bavarian Inn Incorporated.  



Part 2; visiting Zehnder's Holzbrücke

Zehnder's Holzbrücke is located immediately east of M-83 in Frankenmuth along Covered Bridge Lane.  The structure is located next to the Covered Bridge Shop west of the Cass River.  




Zehnder's Holzbrücke facing east over the Cass River from a stylized pedestrian bridge.  


Zehnder's Holzbrücke facing northeast from the Bavarian Belle Riverboat


Zehnder's Holzbrücke facing was along Covered Bridge Lane.  The structure is rated for 10 tons and has an overhead clearance of 13'8 feet.  


Facing northeast on the Cass River from one of the pedestrian walkways on the bridge.  


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New River Gorge National Park & Preserve - Thurmond

By
New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is best known for whitewater rafting and other forms of adventure tourism.  Yet, found in the hollows and isolated valleys are quiet farms and former coal mining towns.  Well off the beaten path and isolated from much of its surroundings, Thurmond provides a unique view into Central West Virginia's industrial past. Thurmond began as a railroad town in the late 1800s.  Sparked by the arrival of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad and the local coal industry, Thurmond quickly grew into a sizeable transportation and coal center.  When it incorporated as a town in 1903, Thurmond was a full-fledged community - home to two banks, two hotels, and many other services and stores. A CSX freight train passes the old coaling tower in Thurmond.  It was here that many steam locomotives would refill and refuel. Thurmond was home to a C&O railyard which serviced the numerous steam engines passing through the narrow valley.  Thu...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Tale of Tollhouse Road, western California State Route 168 and failed Piute Pass Highway

By
Western California State Route 168 is entirely located in Fresno County and is linked historically to the Tollhouse Road corridor.   Tollhouse Road is one of the oldest highways in the Sierra Nevada range of Fresno County. The corridor presently begins in at Clovis Avenue in downtown Clovis and extends northeast to Huntington Lake. In 1866 the Woods Brothers established mining claims on Pine Ridge. In 1867 Fresno County would grant the brothers a toll franchise to construct a roadway to the desirable logging areas atop Pine Ridge and near Dinkey Creek. The Woods would establish a tollhouse at the start of their franchise road and lumber mill. The lumber mill attracted settlers which led to the establishment of the mountain town of Tollhouse. Fresno County would purchase the Tollhouse Road in 1878 and make it a public highway. The county would remove the tolls and incorporate the corridor into the existing county road network. Prior to the establishment of Clovis in 1...
Post a Comment
Read more

Old Dunlap Road (former California State Route 180 in Yokuts Valley)

By
When California State Route 180 was commissioned in August 1934 the alignment in took in Sierra Nevada range was very different than from today.  The original highway alignment from Squaw Valley (now Yokuts Valley) to east Grant Grove (then part of General Grant National Park) originally followed what is now Ruth Hill Road, Dunlap Road, Pinehurst Road (modern California State Route 245), Dark Canyon Road (partially now Forest Road 14S45).  After funding fell through for the planned Kings Canyon Road the was corridor eventually picked up as a 30-mile-long cooperative project between the Division of Highways and Federal Government.  Much of current alignment of California State Route 180 bypassing Squaw Valley (now Yokuts Valley) and Dunlap was complete by 1941.  The post-1941 alignment of California State Route 180 in Squaw Valley was shifted onto what was once Dunlap Road in Squaw Valley.  This alignment itself was later bypassed by modern California State Route...
Post a Comment
Read more