In early March, 1912, Judge W W Moore stepped out of his farmhouse located in the bottoms of the Little Buffalo River near Jasper. He was out clearing up his fence line when he noticed a farm woman walking down the trail, a basket of eggs on her arm. She hesitated when she got to the Little Buffalo, for the water was cold and swift. She walked out on the gravel bank, took off her shoes and socks and waded the river and went to town to trade her eggs for goods at James Brasel's general store. Judge Moore was still tending his fences when she returned, her basked loaded with groceries, and waded back. As she walked home along a mountain trail, the judge thought to himself "Doggone if it's right for a woman to walk four miles and wade the river twice to sell four bits' worth of eggs. We need a bridge for a woman like that to walk across, and by golly we'll get one."
He set about figuring out how to build a bridge and what it would cost. He presented the idea to the merchant, James Brasel, and the two started raising the funds. Everyone in Jasper and the surrounding areas put in their "bit" and soon the $300 needed for construction was raised.
Barbara LeRoy is the author of “Which Side Were They On?,” a new 302 page book listing biographical sketches of the Newton Countians who were involved in the Civil War, available for sale either in the Bradley House Museum or by purchasing online at www.newtoncountyar.com. The book sells for $33.