Book excerpt: When its first covered bridge was constructed on the Ashtabula-Trumbull Turnpike in 1832, Ashtabula County was closer to frontier than a "new Connecticut." Its rutted roads promised adventure and suggested prosperity but also great hardship. Covered bridges, made mostly of local timber, would eventually soften the brutality of travel, isolation and a well-watered landscape. Their proliferation and preservation gave Ashtabula County the nickname "Covered Bridge Capital of the Western Reserve." Admire both famous and forgotten crossings with Carl E. Feather, who has spent over a quarter century mired in muddy creek beds, camera in hand, waiting for the perfect light."