The Spencerville Covered Bridge has a rich heritige.
At one time, DeKalb County was home to five covered bridges: Newville, Dills, Spencerville, Houlton and Cedar Chapel. The Cedar Chapel Bridge has been restored at Conner Prarie in Hamilton County.The Spencerville Bridge is the only one remaining. The year of it's completion was 1873. A contract was awarded to John A. McKay for the construction of the bridge. He was to be paid $23 per lineal foot for 146 feet of the bridge. This amount was to be paid as fast as the material was furnished and the work progressed. He was also paid $12 for his drawings and specifications of the bridge. The bridge was to be finnished by November 1, 1873 according to the contract.
Spencerville was first known as a river settlement on the big bend of the St. Joe River. It has been identified as the first settlement in DeKalb County which began in 1828. The first store was established in 1838. By 1840, a dam was constructed and a saw mill was operating. By 1843, the town had it's first doctor and the grist mill was operating by 1845. In 1853, the first "free" school was operating and in 1898, the first high school was built
There were reports that Spencerville was founded by John Spencer and named after him, but those reports were proven to be false. The truth is that the land was planned or laid out on the Dawson Farm and called Spencerville by Ruben J. Dawson in honor of his brother-in-law, Col. John Spencer (at this time Collector of Monies for the U.S. land office in Ft. Wayne).
This is a very brief synopsis of the history of this area. For more info on this subject, please check your local library. |
