J. A. Britton
Joseph Albert Britton | |
---|---|
Born | 1839 |
Died | 1929 |
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Bridge builder |
Joseph Albert Britton (1839–1929),[1] most commonly known as J.A. Britton, was a builder of bridges in Indiana. He created many works that survive and are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[2][3]
Biography
According to a Historic American Engineering Record record, Britton was born in 1839 near Rockville, Indiana.[1] He learned carpentry from his father, but began his career as an attorney with a practice in Lawrence, Kansas.[4] In 1879 he returned to Parke County and switched his focus to carpentry and bridgebuilding.[4] After Britton's primary regional competitor J. J. Daniels retired in 1904, Britton was engaged to build most of the bridges in Parke County between 1904 and 1917.[4]
Throughout his 33-year bridgebuilding career Britton built approximately 40 bridges in three Indiana counties: Parke, Putnam, and Vermillion.[1]
Work credits
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Cox_Ford_Covered_Bridge_Parke_County_Indiana.jpg/220px-Cox_Ford_Covered_Bridge_Parke_County_Indiana.jpg)
Works (credit) include:
- Cox Ford Bridge, N of Rockville off US 41, Rockville, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Harry Evans Bridge, SE of Mecca off Old Greencastle Rd., Mecca, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Jeffries Ford Bridge, SW of Bridgeton, Bridgeton, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Leatherwood Station Bridge, E of Montezuma, Montezuma, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Lusk Home and Mill Site, Off IN 47 in Turkey Run State Park, Marshall, IN (Britton, J.A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Marshall Bridge, N of Rockville, Rockville, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- McAllister Bridge, N of Bridgeton, Bridgeton, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Narrows_Covered_Bridge_Turkey_Run_SP.jpg/220px-Narrows_Covered_Bridge_Turkey_Run_SP.jpg)
- Narrows Bridge (Indiana), N of Rockville Off IN 47, Rockville, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Nevins Bridge, NW of Bridgeton, Bridgeton, IN (Britton, J. A. & Son), NRHP-listed[3]
- Phillips Bridge, SE of Montezuma off US 36, Montezuma, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Sim Smith Bridge, SE of Montezuma off US 36, Montezuma, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- State Sanitorium Bridge, E of Rockville off US 36, Rockville, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Thorpe Ford Bridge, SE of Mecca on Rosedale Catlin Rd., Mecca, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
- Zacke Cox Bridge, SE of Mecca off US 41, Mecca, IN (Britton, J. A.), NRHP-listed[3]
Family
J. A. Britton's son, Eugene Britton, built the Bowsher Ford Covered Bridge, a single span Burr Arch truss covered bridge structure, in 1915.[5][6] On February 18, 1909, Eugene Britton was elected a director of the newly formed National Reserve Bank of the City of New York.[7]
References
- ^ a b c John M. Kelly. "Leatherwood Station Covered Bridge". Historic American Engineering Record.
- ^ "Parke County Covered Bridges TR". National Park Service.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ a b c Vlach, John (1980). "Joseph J. Daniels and Joseph A. Britton: Parke County's Covered Bridge Builders". Indiana Folklore: A Reader: 23–24. ISBN 978-0-253-10986-6. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- ^ "Bowsher Ford Covered Bridge (#32)". Parke County Incorporated / Parke County Convention and Visitors Commission. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Indiana State Historic Architectural and Archaeological Research Database (SHAARD)" (Searchable database). Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. Retrieved 2016-06-01. Note: This includes Charles Felkner (December 1977). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Parke County Covered Bridge Historic District" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-06-01., Site map, and Accompanying photographs.
- ^ "Oriental Bank Merged", The New York Times, New York City, p. 6, February 19, 1909, retrieved January 19, 2017