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Panethos @[email protected] · 2026-06-29 · 09:00 UTC
Spanning a River, a Century, and Two Lives Given for Us

Most of us don’t contemplate time in relation to everyday structures unless there is something unique or historic about it. We drive a highway, enter a building, walk a trail, cross a bridge, or climb a staircase without any thought of its existence beyond its utilitarian purpose.
Now and then an otherwise obscure structure will garner our attention merely by a fortuitous glance. That happened to this blog author and wife recently while we were traveling through southeast Kansas.
Old U S 160 Bridge (Montgomery County Bridge #628) over the Verdigris River
Just east of Independence, Kansas, while crossing the rain swollen Verdigris River on U.S. 160, I just happened to look to the right and saw an impressive four-span concrete through-arch bridge upriver from where we were. For the heck of it, we decided to circle back and take a closer look. Boy, are we ever glad we did.
Approaching Montgomery County Bridge #628
The first thing noticed beyond the bridge’s handsome architecture was its birthdate engraved into the mortar…“1926.” Well now, we have ourselves a centenarian. This grand old bridge has survived the Depression; countless severe storms and tornadoes; snow, salt, wind, and ice; reckless divers; snowplows; heavy trucks and farm machinery, being bypassed by a strapping steel span, budget cuts, deferred maintenance, and who knows what else. Yet, the Old Route 160 Bridge (technically Montgomery County Bridge #628) across the Verdigris River has withstood all of these challenges and the test of time.
As noted earlier, Montgomery County Bridge #628 consists of four spans. It is a Rainbow (or Marsh) through-arch. The bridge has a total length of 434 feet with a main span of 122 feet and a width of 20 feet. It was built by the Fifield Construction Company of Waterloo, Iowa and Marsh Engineering Company of Des Moines. These two firms also combined forces to construct a similar, though shorter bridge in nearby Coffeyville that same year (1926).
– Source for the information in the previous paragraph: historic bridges.org
James B. Marsh Rainbow Arch patent image – Source: en.wikipedia.org
Montgomery County Bridge #628 was added to the National Register of History Places in 1983. It is the longest remaining Rainbow (or Marsh) Arch bridge in Kansas. James B. Marsh, founder of Marsh Engineering received a patent for this type of bridge design in 1911 (see image above). Two notable aspects of the bridge’s history from the register application include:
“It was not until the introduction of the “rainbow arch” by Marsh, that Kansas made widespread use of reinforced concrete spans for major stream crossings. Marsh canvassed the midwest, selling his arches in direct competition with the steel trusses at that time.”
“The Verdigris River bridge east of Independence, Kansas retains its integrity of
location, design, setting, materials, feeling, and association. It is associated with the life of James B. Marsh, pioneer in steel and concrete bridge construction. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type and method of construction that is no longer used, and, as such, may yield information important to the history of engineering.”
– Source: npgallery.nps.gov
Crossing the Montgomery County Bridge #628 on foot – the date is inscribed at the top of the first arch.
But there is more to this handsome river span than first meets the eye. Set near ground level on either end of the concrete bridge walls are four old plaques. Two list the usual details like the year built and platitudes for those who oversaw its design and construction.
Traditional bridge plaque Memorial plaque honoring of PFC Otis Glenn Dewlen
On another plaque (see above) was a solemn dedication. The bridge we had just stumbled upon by chance is dedicated to the memory of O. “Otis” Glenn Dewlen, a nearly 22 year-old man who was killed during the Argonne Forest Campaign in France on September 26, 1918. His death occurred barely eight weeks before the signing of the November 11th Armistice, which brought an end to World War I.
Source: findagrave.com
Below is an image of the newspaper account of his death as written by his Sergeant in a letter to his mother…

– Source: newspapers.com
Apparently, we missed the second memorial plaque dedicated to another local young man (Harry F. Spohnhauer) who died on November 2, 1918, a mere nine days before the Armistice. As a result the honorary, non-technical name for the bridge is the Dewlen-Spohnhauer Memorial Bridge. Unfortunately, readily available information on PFC Spohnhauer was not found online, other than he appears to have lived just outside of Independence near the community of Cherryvale.
Memorial plaque honoring PFC Harry F. Spohnhauer – Source: historicbridges.org
Such an occurrence is not unusual. It seems no matter how many times we traverse the heartland of the United States on our way to and fro, there is always something new to see, observe, attend, or happen upon. Sometimes it’s a scenic vista, while other times it’s a lonely bridge in Kansas that commemorates two brave young men.
Mostly, it’s the unexpected and unplanned surprises that are vividly etched into the lasting memories of our psyche. Montgomery County Bridge #628 is just such a place. We will forever be grateful for the opportunity afforded us to visit this remarkable old bridge and honor these two stalwart young men who sacrificed their lives for the greater good.
“Something for all of us to ponder as we rapidly approach the nation’s 250th birthday during a time of ongoing threats to our cherished civil liberties — these two young privates from a small Kansas community, so aptly named Independence, gave their lives to protect those same freedoms that most Americans plan to celebrate during the upcoming week. We all owe them a debt of gratitude.”
– Panethos.wordpress.com
Peace!
Postscript:
Given the historical, engineering, and commemorative importance of Montgomery County Bridge #628, it seems that routine maintenance should be an ongoing priority. As some of the photos taken last week clearly show, the bridge appears to need prompt service and care to assure it retains its integrity and survives yet another century to honor its unique engineering design and especially in remembrance of two young men from Independence, Kansas.
Source: commons.wikimedia.org
SOURCES:
#bridges #centenarian #fallenSoldiers #history #IndependenceKansas #Kansas #PFCDewlen #PFCSpohnhauer #tourism #transportation #travel #WWI #WWIHistory
#bridges #centenarian #fallensoldiers #history #independencekansas #kansas
Panethos @[email protected] · 2026-06-29 · 09:00 UTC
Spanning a River, a Century, and Two Lives Given for Us

Most of us don’t contemplate time in relation to everyday structures unless there is something unique or historic about it. We drive a highway, enter a building, walk a trail, cross a bridge, or climb a staircase without any thought of its existence beyond its utilitarian purpose.
Now and then an otherwise obscure structure will garner our attention merely by a fortuitous glance. That happened to this blog author and wife recently while we were traveling through southeast Kansas.
Old U S 160 Bridge (Montgomery County Bridge #628) over the Verdigris River
Just east of Independence, Kansas, while crossing the rain swollen Verdigris River on U.S. 160, I just happened to look to the right and saw an impressive four-span concrete through-arch bridge upriver from where we were. For the heck of it, we decided to circle back and take a closer look. Boy, are we ever glad we did.
Approaching Montgomery County Bridge #628
The first thing noticed beyond the bridge’s handsome architecture was its birthdate engraved into the mortar…“1926.” Well now, we have ourselves a centenarian. This grand old bridge has survived the Depression; countless severe storms and tornadoes; snow, salt, wind, and ice; reckless divers; snowplows; heavy trucks and farm machinery, being bypassed by a strapping steel span, budget cuts, deferred maintenance, and who knows what else. Yet, the Old Route 160 Bridge (technically Montgomery County Bridge #628) across the Verdigris River has withstood all of these challenges and the test of time.
As noted earlier, Montgomery County Bridge #628 consists of four spans. It is a Rainbow (or Marsh) through-arch. The bridge has a total length of 434 feet with a main span of 122 feet and a width of 20 feet. It was built by the Fifield Construction Company of Waterloo, Iowa and Marsh Engineering Company of Des Moines. These two firms also combined forces to construct a similar, though shorter bridge in nearby Coffeyville that same year (1926).
– Source for the information in the previous paragraph: historic bridges.org
James B. Marsh Rainbow Arch patent image – Source: en.wikipedia.org
Montgomery County Bridge #628 was added to the National Register of History Places in 1983. It is the longest remaining Rainbow (or Marsh) Arch bridge in Kansas. James B. Marsh, founder of Marsh Engineering received a patent for this type of bridge design in 1911 (see image above). Two notable aspects of the bridge’s history from the register application include:
“It was not until the introduction of the “rainbow arch” by Marsh, that Kansas made widespread use of reinforced concrete spans for major stream crossings. Marsh canvassed the midwest, selling his arches in direct competition with the steel trusses at that time.”
“The Verdigris River bridge east of Independence, Kansas retains its integrity of
location, design, setting, materials, feeling, and association. It is associated with the life of James B. Marsh, pioneer in steel and concrete bridge construction. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type and method of construction that is no longer used, and, as such, may yield information important to the history of engineering.”
– Source: npgallery.nps.gov
Crossing the Montgomery County Bridge #628 on foot – the date is inscribed at the top of the first arch.
But there is more to this handsome river span than first meets the eye. Set near ground level on either end of the concrete bridge walls are four old plaques. Two list the usual details like the year built and platitudes for those who oversaw its design and construction.
Traditional bridge plaque Memorial plaque honoring of PFC Otis Glenn Dewlen
On another plaque (see above) was a solemn dedication. The bridge we had just stumbled upon by chance is dedicated to the memory of O. “Otis” Glenn Dewlen, a nearly 22 year-old man who was killed during the Argonne Forest Campaign in France on September 26, 1918. His death occurred barely eight weeks before the signing of the November 11th Armistice, which brought an end to World War I.
Source: findagrave.com
Below is an image of the newspaper account of his death as written by his Sergeant in a letter to his mother…

– Source: newspapers.com
Apparently, we missed the second memorial plaque dedicated to another local young man (Harry F. Spohnhauer) who died on November 2, 1918, a mere nine days before the Armistice. As a result the honorary, non-technical name for the bridge is the Dewlen-Spohnhauer Memorial Bridge. Unfortunately, readily available information on PFC Spohnhauer was not found online, other than he appears to have lived just outside of Independence near the community of Cherryvale.
Memorial plaque honoring PFC Harry F. Spohnhauer – Source: historicbridges.org
Such an occurrence is not unusual. It seems no matter how many times we traverse the heartland of the United States on our way to and fro, there is always something new to see, observe, attend, or happen upon. Sometimes it’s a scenic vista, while other times it’s a lonely bridge in Kansas that commemorates two brave young men.
Mostly, it’s the unexpected and unplanned surprises that are vividly etched into the lasting memories of our psyche. Montgomery County Bridge #628 is just such a place. We will forever be grateful for the opportunity afforded us to visit this remarkable old bridge and honor these two stalwart young men who sacrificed their lives for the greater good.
“Something for all of us to ponder as we rapidly approach the nation’s 250th birthday during a time of ongoing threats to our cherished civil liberties — these two young privates from a small Kansas community, so aptly named Independence, gave their lives to protect those same freedoms that many Americans plan to celebrate during the upcoming week. We all owe them a debt of gratitude.”
– Panethos.wordpress.com
Peace!
Postscript:
Given the historical, engineering, and commemorative importance of Montgomery County Bridge #628, it seems that routine maintenance should be an ongoing priority. As some of the photos taken last week clearly show, the bridge appears to need prompt service and care to assure it retains its integrity and survives yet another century to honor its unique engineering design and especially in remembrance of two young men from Independence, Kansas.
Source: commons.wikimedia.org
SOURCES:
#bridges #centenarian #fallenSoldiers #history #IndependenceKansas #Kansas #PFCDewlen #PFCSpohnhauer #tourism #transportation #travel #WWI #WWIHistory
#bridges #centenarian #fallensoldiers #history #independencekansas #kansas