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Summary
Wakely Road Bridge
Wakely Road spanning Wakely Creek, Saratoga, Wood County
Date of Construction: 1892
The Wakely Road Bridge is a single-arch, one-lane bridge commissioned by farmers in Saratoga township, known at the time as Sand County. The cost was probably somewhere around ninety dollars (based on the cost of a nearby bridge built ten years later). No contract was ever found, which supports the local tradition that the bridge was funded by Robert and Mary Wakely and built by their son, Newbold. Local citizens credit the Wakelys as the founders of Point Basse. After their death, the community named the road and bridge in their honor.
Farmers east of Wakely Creek requested the bridge to access the growing town of Point Basse. However, during construction of the bridge, economic changes favored the eastern side of the creek, when a new railroad line and a reopened paper mill were located to the east. So rather than provide a route into Point Basse, the Wakely Road Bridge ironically served as an avenue for those leaving the community to move to the more successful community of Nekoosa. By 1907, residents abandoned Point Basse and the Wakely Road Bridge remained in very limited use.
Today the Wakely Road Bridge is the only extant stone bridge in Wood County. It is still used for limited vehicular passage.
Property Details
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Designations
State & National Registers of Historic Places
The State Register and National Register recognize buildings, sites, districts, structures, and objects that are significant in national, state, or local history. The State Historic Preservation Office in conjunction with the National Park Service maintains the list for Wisconsin and makes the data available to the public for research and education.
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