The longest covered wooden bridge in Europe

8 September 2021

The wooden bridge connects the German town of Bad Säckingen (Baden-Württemberg) with the municipality of Stein in the Fricktal (canton of Aargau).
It is the longest covered wooden bridge in Europe, spanning 204 meters.

The wooden bridge was first mentioned in the annals of Colmar in 1272 and consisted of twelve wooden pillars. The wooden bridge was destroyed several times by wars and floods, but was rebuilt each time. The wooden bridge was closed entirely during World War II.

After having belonged to the House of Habsburg-Austria for more than 500 years, the Fricktal and the Rhine became the national border between Germany and Switzerland due to political developments following the Treaty of Lunéville (1801). The Fricktal was Austrian until 1799.

Between the Grand Duchy of Baden and the Canton of Aargau, the most incredible depth of the Rhine was the national border, but in the case of bridges, the middle of the bridge.

A bridge toll financed the maintenance of the bridge until the mid-19th century. The Swiss side collected the money in the bridge house.