Rush Creek
Bridge
Built in 1904 by William
Hendricks
Location: The bridge is located about 1 1/2 miles south
of Tangier Indiana. This is a very rural area of Parke County.
Size: The length of this bridge is 77' +9' +9'. The width
is 16' and 12'6" tall. It has a Burr Arch 1 span truss. The
foundation is cut stone.
Bridge History: Levees have been installed and the nearby
Fairview Church moved because of the violent floods.
This is the first of three bridges built by William Hendricks.
It was followed by Wilkins Mill, in 1906 and Earl Ray in 1907. All
three are of similar construction. The portals have an extremely
shallow arch. The bridge name is the same as the creek.
Nearby Tangier was preceded by a grain warehouse built in 1855
by William B. Swaim. (Later it was operated by his son, S.B. Swaim,
and burned in 1931.) The town was organized and platted on March
16, 1886, after the Brazil Division of the Chicago and Eastern
Illinois Railroad was built. The railroad passed the Rush Creek
Covered Bridge. The railroad went bankrupt in 1921, was sold in
1922, was closed in 1941, and was scrapped out in 1943.
The Post Office was open from 1886 to 1990. Other businesses and
buildings included a flour mill, hardware store, hotel, three
doctors, three groceries, implement store, harness shop, millinery
shop, two barbers, two blacksmiths, sawmill, drug store, three
churches, Odd Fellows Lodge, canning factory, telephone company,
depot, and schools.
The population of Tangier was reported as 300 in 1913 and 1927. In
1990 the population was reported as 100. As clay and coal mines
closed, jobs, and population decreased.
The name Tangier was given by the town's surveyor, Captain John
T. Campbell. He may have chosen it as a result of his earlier visit
to Tangier, Morocco, in Africa. Other names for the town include
Long Siding, Liberty Crossing, Swaim's Station, and even
Sylvania.
The cache is a 2 quart Lock & Lock container. Please hide it
as well or better than you found it. There is a Sacagawea dollar in
the cache for the first one to find.