Covered bridges were first built in the 1810s when it was determined that adding a roof over wooden bridges would better protect the decking and support trusses and increase the lifespan of the bridge. The decking and support systems of the era would last an average of ten years on uncovered wooden bridges. As was later discovered, covered wooden bridges ultimately averaged ten times the lifespan of uncovered ones. Covered bridges were sometimes referred to as "kissing bridges" during the more modest era of the late 19th Century, as the privacy from passing through a covered bridge would allow passengers in horse and buggy an opportunity to kiss each other unobserved.