Where in Elk County Am I?

[Wilma]

I'm lost.  How about the rest of you?

[flintauqua]

Bridge One - If you 'swing' over a block, you'll be here.

Bridge Two - Thomas E. Thompson would enjoy this Game.

[Wilma]

I think I know where bridge one is now.  You will hear from me shortly.

[flintauqua]

Okay, we had some new players come into the game late over on my FB wall and I was giving them a little overtime period to work with.  

Bridge one is the Silver Bridge in the 600 block of N. Main in Moline, one block east and downstream of the Oldest Swinging Bridge in Kansas.  Ole granny got this one right away, even providing a little history lesson about how it replaced a Red Bridge after Johnny McSpadden wrecked on the bridge.  (Elders in my family referred to this previous one as the Wagon Bridge).  Wilma and Janet also got this one right, as did a few on FB, whom I have acknowledged in PM's on FB.

Only Janet came up with Bridge Two, though Kelly Wunderlich Murphy came close on my FB wall.  Kelly guessed it as being the bypassed bridge across Clear Creek, now in one of Huntington's pastures SE of Elk Falls on Road 20 south of the old route of US 160 from Elk Falls to Longton.  This bridge is very similar in age and construction to the bridge pictured, and kind of fits some of the clues.  But referencing Tommy Thompson and the word Game in the clues got the proper response from Janet - the old bridge over Game Creek on Road 18 (what is still called River Road by some) between Killdeer and Junebug, south of the entrance to Polk Daniels Lake.  Many on here will recall that Polk Daniels was Thomas E. Thompson's pen name.  Janet also noted that the foundations of a building and other farmstead ruins that remain near the bridge are those of the farmhouse that belonged to Gene Perkins' parents.  The farmstead is labeled "2" in the snip below, with the old bridge being "1".

[Ole Granny]

I must say the Silver bridge was so very easy for me, since I lived just north of it growing up.  Spent many fun filled days playing in the creek below.  Thanks for the memories...

[Diane Amberg]

I even figured out the one because I know where the swinging bridge is.The other...no idea.

[Janet Harrington]

The old bridge that is over Game Creek on Gene Perkins used to have sides on it. Gene told me a story about how Guy Denton couldn't get a piece of farm equipment over it and he asked the commissioners to do something. they hemmed and hawed and just couldn't figure out what to do. Guy Denton solved their problem for them. He took a crowbar and pushed the bigs stones that were in his way off into the creek. Problem solved. Those stones are still there. Gene says somewhere there is a picture of that bridge after the county had built it showing the county workers in their bibs sitting on the bridge. Sure would like to see that picture. The road has been changed and a new bridge put in. You can see the old bridge from the county road. However; if you really want to go look at it, please be sure you get permission from Gene Perkins as he owns the bridge and the old county road that is still there.

[Janet Harrington]

I wanted to tell you that I did not dicuss this with my mother. LOL

[Wilma]

She definitely did not tell me about it.  I might have beat her to it if she had.  I did have an inkling that it was in that vicinity, but since I haven't been in that vicinity since I can't remember when, I could only guess about where a road might have been straightened.

[flintauqua]

Will there be a July installment of Where In Elk County Am I?  If anyone is interested let me know here or on Facebook.  If so, we'll start sometime Thursday afternoon or evening.