We recently were invited by a Cowley County resident to see a stone arch bridge on his property. This bridge was always private, and was built as part of a farmyard over a century ago.
Special thanks to everyone who made this visit to the bridge possible; if you are reading this you know who you are and your kindness is appreciated. Thanks also to the landowner for allowing us to take photos and put this information on the website.
The Story of the Bridge
This private stone bridge has a known history; it was built in 1907 by Butler County stone mason Abe Matheney. Abe Matheney built this little 10′ stone arch bridge when a prosperous farmer hired Abe Matheney to do various stonework on his farm, which also included the bridge.
Abe Matheney had a reputation in Cowley County at this time, which was established in 1904 after he built the 54′-span Dawson Ford stone arch bridge over Rock Creek near Rock.
The Dawson Bridge was demolished long ago, probably to make way for US 77; some remains are visible at low water. The last known Cowley County stone bridge built by Abe Matheney was near Floral and was demolished in 1999 allegedly due to insufficient width. That said, circumstantial evidence suggests that the Stalter Bridge near Rock is also an Abe Matheney bridge, though we have been unable to conclusively prove this at this time.
The Bridge
The little private stone bridge Abe Matheney built is in very good condition overall, and features impressively long wing walls.
The landowner has done some preservation work on the structure, and it looks good for many a year to come. It is very much like some of Cowley’s other road stone bridges. This is a unique, little-known structure. Many stone bridges have been privatized over the years, but in Butler and Cowley counties several people also had their very own private stone bridges built; we recently found a stone arch access culvert for a house that no longer exists near Towanda, and an old stone bridge carrying a private road over a ditch also near Towanda. How many other privately built stone bridges remain in Butler and Cowley counties?
Stone Arch Bridges 