Covered bridges are an important cultural feature on the Lane County landscape.
Lane county has more covered bridges than any other county west of the Appalachian Mountains.
Eighteen of the twenty bridges in the county are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Covered bridges were constructed to withstand heavy rains and salty sea air. The barn-type structures over the bridges protect the wood trusses and floor planking from the elements and extend the functional lives of the bridges. The design of the wooden bridges is similar to steel truss bridges, but the shortage of steel during World War I and the local access to high quality timber contributed to the use of wood as a bridge building material. By 1918, plans for covered bridges had become standardized to include open windows for light and ventilation together with such features as laminated floors and interior whitewashing.