BURFORDVILLE BRIDGE BIDS BEING SOUGHT

BURFORDVILLE -- Jack Smoot doesn't know what will happen to the covered bridge at Bollinger Mill State Historic Site if the bridge isn't restored soon.

"I don't know how to answer that," historic-site administrator Smoot said when asked. "It's impossible to say."

What Smoot does know is that the bridge has endured nearly 130 years of wind, rain, and flooding that have taken a toll on one of Missouri's four last covered bridges -- and that it is in dire need of restoration.

Many of the timbers, especially trusses that actually support the weight of the bridge, have been damaged by rot and insect infestation.

Several of the wooden keys that help support the bridge are beginning to fail, which reduces the structure's ability to hold weight by one-fourth, Smoot said.

It isn't as if no one has been trying to get the bridge restored.

Bids from engineering companies interested in restoring the bridge are currently being taken, Smoot said. The bids will be opened May 6 in Jefferson.

Smoot said that if the bids are under budget it should take less than a year to complete the renovations.

In 1993, $611,200 in state funds were allocated to the bridge restoration. That project involved a complete restoration of the structure. Smoot said that two bids were received for that job, both of which were over budget.

So the scope of the project -- which initially had involved totally disassembling the bridge to reinforce it -- had to be narrowed, Smoot said.

The revised project will entail a simplified renovation that will reinforce the timbers and keys with metal plates with wooden facades to cover them to help the bridge keep its original look.

But it is uncertain whether any restoration will be done, Smoot said.

"I don't want to get anyone's hopes up," Smoot said. "It's still iffy."

Smoot hopes that some of the bids are under budget. If they aren't, things don't look good for the covered bridge, he said.

The Burfordville bridge has been closed to vehicle traffic since the mid-1980s. In 1991, the bridge was even closed to foot traffic after inspectors checked it in preparation for the restoration effort and found it unsafe.

But Smoot, who has worked at the site for 12 years, said he won't give up on the bridge.

"I guess if that happens, the Department of Natural Resources will go to the Legislature and ask for more money," he said. "Our goal is to keep this bridge around for generations. We'd like it to be around another 100 years."

Smoot said the bridge draws a lot of interest from visitors, but is also a point of local pride. There are national organizations devoted to the preservation of old mills and covered bridges around the country.