The weed-grown masonry to the right of the Wrong-way Bridge is the east abutment of the old "Double Bridge" now at the Sheleburne Museum. Photo by Joe Nelson, November 29, 2006

      In Cambridge, Vermont, we often hear residents speak about the so-called "Wrong-Way Bridge" crossing the Lamoille River on VT Route 15, at the east end of Cambridge village. Having had a career with the local steel fabricator who did the steel work for this attractive structure, I was always puzzled by the bridge's configuration. The bridge curves around to the left towards the villages of Fletcher and Fairfield, rather than curving around to the right to carry VT Route 15 towards Jeffersonville. How come, I once asked former Chapter member, the late Stearns Jenkins, and a career engineer in the Vermont Highway Department, now the Vermont Agency of Transportation.
      Stearns explained to me that this project was part of a post WW II plan to rearrange the highway between the villages of Cambridge and Jeffersonville, Vermont state Route 15. It was a four-part plan, and I never gleaned the exact order for which the plan was to be executed.
      For one part, call it Part One; Vermont Route 15 through Jeffersonville village was to be replaced by a parallel by-pass west of the village's main street.
      Another part, call it Part Two; was to relocate the adjacent Seymour Brook to join the Lamoille River, upstream, and east of the then existing, large double-barreled covered bridge which crossed over the Lamoille River.
      Another part, call it Part Three; was to remove two covered bridges on Route 15 at the east end of Cambridge village, and replace them with a new multi-span steel girder bridge over the Lamoille River, curving to the west as an unnumbered route, named Pumpkin Harbor Road, towards Fletcher and Fairfield.
      The last part, call it Part Four; was to relocate VT Rte 15 between Cambridge village and Jeffersonville village, along the abandoned roadbed/right-of-way of the Burlington & Lamoille RR, which ran from Cambridge Junction to Burlington, through Jeffersonville and Cambridge Villages.
      Well - what happened?
      Part One - relocating Rte 15 just west of Jeffersonville was completed at some point in time.
      Part Two - Seymour Brook (now Seymour River) was relocated to join the Lamoille River upstream, east of its former entry into the Lamoille.
      Part Three - the two covered bridges were removed and a new multi-span steel girder bridge was built over the Lamoille River, curving to the west, towards Fletcher and Fairfield, Pumpkin Harbor Road. The smaller of the two covered bridges, the so-called Gates Bridge still crosses Seymour Brook as it once did on Rte 15, but it was moved to cross the Seymour for access into agricultural fields. But the large double barreled Cambridge Bridge with an adjacent covered walkway, 168 feet long, was dismantled and sold to the Shelburne Museum in 1951. At the museum, a small pond was excavated just off U.S. Route 7, the bridge erected across it, and served as the main entrance to the famous museum for several years. Now it is a secondary museum entrance, a new road entrance having been built just to the south.
      Part four - alas, the State of Vermont never proceeded to relocate Rte 15 between Cambridge and Jeffersonville villages along the then abandoned, B&L RR right-of-way. Probably the "Legislatchah" couldn't find, or wouldn't appropriate the funds for it. Now eastbound Rte 15 traffic crosses the Lamoille, on the, maybe now appropriately named, "wrong-way bridge", and at the north end makes a torturous very sharp right turn to continue on Rte 15 to Jeff.
      One humorous post script to this, is that one visitor to the Shelburne Museum voiced the opinion, that he couldn't understand why the Museum didn't just fill in that little pond, rather than having to find an antiquated bridge, with which to cross over it.
[Robert Moore of South Burlington, Vt. has been a member of the VCBS since February, 2000, one of our very first members. Many thanks to Bob for submitting this article. Ed.]

Return to Top

VCBS Annual Fall Meeting, Sept. 30, at the Montshire Museum Photo by Joe Nelson

September 30 -Norwich, VT - Twenty one people gathered in the meeting room at the Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich, Vermont where the Fall Annual meeting of the VCBS was called to order by President John Weaver at 10:20 A.M
      The first order of business was the reading of the minutes of the Spring All-Member Meeting held in Woodstock by Secretary Irene Barna. There was one correction brought forward by Joe Nelson that Trish Kane is not the Membership Chair; but the Membership Coordinator. The correction was duly made in the minutes. A motion to approve the corrected minutes was called by President Weaver; bringing the motion to the floor made by David Charkes and seconded by Rae Laitres.

Events Report - Johnny Esau:
      Several places available for lunch had been suggested as well as the King Arthur Flour site nearby.
      Johnny suggests members contact him with suggestions where to meet geographically for VCBS meetings. He would also like opinions on whether VCBS should sponsor a safari.

Legislation Watch: no report given in the absence of the chair.

The Treasurer's Report was read by Treasurer Neil Daniels:
For the period from January 1, 2006 through September 7, 2006:
Income
Bridger Ads - - - - - -$ 36.00
Donations - - - - - - - 341.00
Dues - - - - - - - - - - - 1,135.00
Events - - - - - - - - - - - 356.25
Sales - - - - - - - - - - - - 40.26
Misc.- - - - - - - - - - 210.00
Total Income - - - - -$2,118.51

Expenses
Communications - - - - -$ 384.78
Crafts committee - - - - - - 279.49
Events - - - - - - - - - - - - - 444.30
Legislation - - - - - - - - - - - 30.77
Membership - - - - - - - - - - 62.89
Office & unspecified - - - 97.24
Total Expenses - - - - - $1,299.47

Save-a-bridge Fund
2004 Funds - - - - - - - -$2,276.89
2005 Funds - - - - - 1,554.29
Total - - - - - - - - - - - - $3,831.18

Current Value - - - - - - $3,833.28

Consists of:
Arrow Bank . . . . . . .$ 539.60 . . . $ 525.40
Chittenden Bank . . . . . .432.75 . . . . 441.30
Merchants Bank . . . . . 490.00 . . . . 473.60
Union Bank . . . . . . . . . 633.60 . . . . .627.00
      EQUITY . . . . . $2,095.95
Cash @ 4.47% . . . . . $1,737.33 . . $1,742.13

A motion to accept the treasurer report was made by John Dostal and seconded by Dick Wilson.

Communications - Joe Nelson:
Joe announced the new editor of The Bridger, Steve Wheaton, has taken hold and hit the ground running. Current deadlines dates may change to better conform to Steve’s obligations. With his new software, Steve can produce a PDF version of the quarterly Bridger newsletter. The PDF version is being offered to the membership for two reasons: 1. To save on postage and printing costs, the committee's greatest expense. 2. The subscriber can enjoy their issues in full color, which the PDF version provides.       Year to date printing costs are $224, postage $158, totaling $382. So far fifteen members have signed up for the PDF Bridger. Steve and Joe will study the newsletter format to simplify production, improve the appearance, and to better showcase our photography.

Membership Report by Trish Kane in absentia read by Joe Nelson:
      Total memberships as of April 29, 2006 . . . . 161
      Deleted since . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -19 (expired)
      New members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +4
      Total memberships as of Sept 30, 2006 . . . . . .146
      (memberships - not people)

      States represented in those 146 memberships: 69 Vermont; 75 in 21 other states; 2 reside in Canada.

      Membership breakdown:
      Business -1, Organization 4, Family 23, Honorary Life 5, Life 33, Life Business 1
      Life Couple 15,Others 64.
      New Members: Bruce McDonald (LC); Robert Page (I); Paul Lindberg (F); Jack Tecce (I).

Bridge Watch - John Weaver: several new members are interested in being involved in the Bridge Watch. John mentions that Part II of the Handbook is available. He asks for semi annual reports from Bridge Watch chairs as many have not been submitted for 6. Please keep up your activities.
      The Cilley Bridge in Tunbridge was rehabilitated this past season. The Creamery Bridge in Brattleboro is advertised now for rehabilitation work. Troy River Road repairs to be advertised in January 2007.
      John has copies of part II Bridge Watch Handbook available.

Nominations Committee: For the Annual Fall Election
President John Weaver
Vice President Joe Nelson
Treasurer Neil Daniels
Secretary Irene Barna

Non-elective positions:
Communications and Membership Chair - Joe Nelson
Bridge Watch Coordinator and Nominations - John Weaver
Events Chair - Johnny Esau
Legislative Watch Chair - Terry Shaw
Bridger Editor - Steve Wheaton
Crafts - open

Comments from Those Present:
Will Thomson mentions that the after contacting the Vermont Historical Society in Montpelier, golf carts were available for those with walking difficulties or rehabilitation needs during the History Expo in Tunbridge.

Dick Wilson gave the following updates on the New York Society:
      The work done on the Rexleigh and Eagleville bridges is now complete. A slide show presented last evening by Bill Caswell as a piece of the Smithsonian Exhibit was an excellent presentation.
      The Smithsonian covered bridge exhibit will appear in Ithaca and is understood to cost $15,000-- too much money for their budget --so that the NYCBS, as only sponsor, decided, even with grant monies, NOT to sponsor the exhibit in another area in New York.
      Over fifty people from the New York Society went on their most recent covered bridge Safari to Pennsylvania. Dick has brought album of photographs of that visit. He and his wife later attended the Richard Donovan Memorial Safari where 42 people visited 19 Lancaster County (PA) bridges.

Old Business:
John Dostal: Starting the first week in April 2007 the Bennington Museum of Art will host the Smithsonian Exhibit of Covered Bridges. Although the cost of getting the exhibit in and out has hidden costs; the Smithsonian Institute gives latitude to change the exhibit slightly. If, after viewing the exhibit today, changes could be suggested of things that need to be exposed he would appreciate their being mentioned as they could influence the exhibit as it would be displayed in Bennington next year. John asks for covered bridge models that would enhance that exhibit; but they would need to be brought to and from Bennington at the time as there is no storage for such items.
      On another note, John mentions that the CB Museum is NOT a depository for CB stuff. People who have accumulated stuff of family collections that they do not choose to keep want to donate them to the CB Museum; but there is no facility to store them.
      Re signage: he has observed that people respond to icons easily recognized.
      A two acre island adjacent to the Paper Mill Bridge in Bennington has a new owner. John hopes to convince the new owner that the island be converted to a public park and that hopefully public funds would be available to assist that purpose.

Ed Barna asked if Bennington Roads along the Wallomoosic River are designated as scenic byways since there is a Federal Project designating certain areas as such. John responded that, during the week after next, a meeting will be held to address just that in conjunction with the promotion of the bridges and attractions of the Bennington area.

New Business:
Neil Daniels asks if anyone can explain the National Parks Service funding and putting together the exhibit we will see today via Smithsonian Institute. Jan Lewandoski, David Wright, Judy Haywood and several from New Hampshire were invited to Washington, DC to attend the beginning of the exhibit. Many of the findings and subject matter are a result of the group of young people brought to Vermont a few years ago to extensively study several bridges. A picture of the Taftsville Bridge is shown, picking it out as unusual. The bridge is unusual because, as Neil Daniels explained, the tallest and biggest trees were located, somehow gotten to the site, and hand-hewn. The lower chord on that bridge consists of one big tree on either side. The majority of the pictures of Vermont are from the young people who were working for the project of the HAER (Historic American Engineering Record) project.
      Ed Barna mentions the HAER Conference held at the University of Vermont a few years back describing details of the study methods and how drawings and measurements were taken of each and every aspect of the selected bridges.
      Further comments from Dick Wilson for Bennington to consider regarding the exhibit were that volunteers are needed to load and unload and provide security during the stay.
      John Dostal wonders if there might be other incidental expenses.
      Bill Caswell mentioned that at the Harrisburg exhibit of the Smithsonian was supplemented with materials relative to Pennsylvania bridges.

Discussion of Potential Covered Bridge Signs Throughout Vermont:
A lengthy discussion on this topic some of those follow:
Potential funding of the directional signs
Joe Nelson: might there be labor conflicts by using volunteers?
Rae Laitres: How might the Vermont Department of Tourism be involved?
David Charkes: Doesn't the State of New Hampshire fund their signs?
How are the Travel Information Signs in Vermont funded?
Ed Barna: Responsibility of Tourism and Marketing? Who do we know in the Legislature that might be influential is getting support from that area?
Dick Wilson: Local highway departments put up the signs in New York State
Will Thompson: If street addresses were given to the bridges GPS could locate them on that system.
      It was moved by John Weaver and seconded by Rae Laitres to table the discussion and to leave the matter to Joe Nelson and Terry Shaw who are pursuing the signage issue with VAOT. There is potential funding available for this project from a member.
      It was mentioned, then, by John Weaver that the Legislative watch has nothing new to report since the April meeting.
      A motion to adjourn at 11:25 a.m. was made by Neil Daniels and seconded by Rae Laitres.
      Upon adjournment members were free to visit all of the exhibits at the Montshire Museum of Science especially the featured traveling covered bridges exhibit from the Smithsonian Institute.
      Thank you to Johnny Esau for finalizing the details of the meeting place, bringing the before-meeting refreshments, and for collecting the monies for admission to the Montshire Museum.
      A thank you is extended also to Kevin Coburn of the Montshire Museum of Science for his assistance in arranging the meeting space.

Respectfully submitted, Irene Barna, Secretary

Return to Top

Parke County, IN, November 9, 2006 - Around two million people invaded Parke County last month for one of the nation's most popular covered bridge festival.
      This year marked the 50th anniversary of the Parke County Covered Bridge Festival.
      The 10-day event offered visitors the chance to see the county's 31 covered bridges and take in a variety of vendors.
      The festival drew around two million people, about 115 tourists for every resident in the county.
      About a week before the festival was held, the county held a special ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the reopening of a bridge that had been destroyed by an arsonist in 2005.
      A 245-foot-long replica of the Bridgeton Bridge was built with the help of hundreds of volunteers and thousands of dollars in donated materials. Two Zionsville companies also worked to rebuild the bridge at a fraction of the initial reconstruction estimate.       A DVD documenting the reconstruction process will also be available for sale in the future.
[Says James Crouse, contributor of this item: "This is only a brief 'business news' item, but it is nice to see coverage as a business item, recognizing the importance to the economy of historic/preservation tourism." See http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/LeadershipIndiana.asp?ID=41&Detail=True]
For More Information go to the Parke County Website http://www.coveredbridges.com

Brattleboro, November 21, 2006 - The Creamery Bridge, WGN 45-13-01, will be closed for reconstruction beginning December 4, completion slated for June, 2007.
      The Creamery Bridge Serves Guilford Street, connecting VT Route 9 to Brattleboro Memorial Park.
      It was originally planned that the Creamery Bridge would be restored for foot and bicycle traffic and bypassed by a modern bridge. That plan has been delayed due to shortage of state funds. When the bridge reopens it will serve vehicular traffic as before, about 4,000 crossings per day.
      The contract was won by Renaud Brothers Inc., of Vernon, with a bid of $285,000. Ninety-five percent of the cost of reconstruction will be paid by the state using federal funds provided for restoring covered bridges in Vermont. The balance, about $20,000, will be paid by the town.
      The 84-foot Town truss span was built in 1879 by A.W. Wright to cross the Whetstone Brook. The slate roof and pedestrian walkway were added in 1917. The bridge is named for the Brattleboro Creamery which stood nearby.
      The renovation will include the replacement of the bridge floor system, portions of the truss lattice, and whatever is found when the bridge is dismantled. A fire alarm and dry sprinkler system will be added.
[Thanks to VCBS member William Carroll for forwarding a Brattleboro Reformer article about the Creamery Bridge repair. Bill comments: "Although this is not one of my 'adopted' bridges, I know it well, and know that it carries far more traffic (all going too fast) than was ever intended. From the sound of the article, it will be a repair/restoration, and not just sticking steel beams under it or putting these very ugly glu-lam beams in it. I agree that it should be bypassed, or maybe moved to a location with far less traffic." Bill Carroll, Chicopee, MA. - Ed.]

Side view of the Jay Bridge [WGN 32-16-01] sitting high over the abutments. Notice the new bridge behind the covered bridge and the old piers. Photo by Dick Wilson, 11/21/06

Jay, NY - November 21, 2006 - Well, I didn't get to the bridge when it was being moved, so I waited for a nice day to go to Jay and to see what progress has been made since the move. I went up to Jay, New York November 21st.
      The Bridge now sets over the abutments, but not on the abutments. During the rains that we had, the engineers found that the new abutments were retaining moisture, so now they are going to build pedestals on the abutments to set the bridge on. The bridge will set high on the cribbing until the new construction is complete.
      The temporary bridge that has been used since 1998 was being loaded on a truck to be taken away and used somewhere else. The piers under the covered bridge will be removed, but the workers did not know a time table for that, as it was to be done by another contractor.
      I was told that a lot of work still had to be done to get the picnic area finished.

It is always nice to be able to report new members joining the Vermont Covered Bridge Society. For this quarter, however, we only have one new member and that is Robert Page from Brattleboro, VT. Welcome Robert!
      By the time you receive this issue of The Bridge Christmas may be just a couple of weeks away. If you need to do a little last minute shopping, why not consider giving a gift certificate for a membership to the Vermont Covered Bridge Society? We also have some lovely covered bridge gift items on our website which you can view by visiting: www.vermontbridges.com. Or contact Joe Nelson directly for more information. All proceeds from the sale of these items support the mission of the Vermont Covered Bridge Society -- to help preserve our covered bridges. A covered bridge book and/or a membership make lovely gifts and are another great way to promote our covered bridges.
      You Still Have Time! Don't forget the Early Renewal Contest for 2007. All you have to do is pay your membership fee before the December 31st deadline. By doing so, you will qualify for a chance at a nice gift. The prizes for this year's contests are: One year free membership to the VCBS; a lovely covered bridge welcome sign, or a gift bag filled with covered bridge items. For more information, see complete details in the Fall 2006 newsletter.
      Bob and I send along our warmest wishes for a wonderful and healthy holiday season to you and your families.
      Trish Kane, Membership Coordinator

Upcoming Birthdays and Anniversaries

December

• 1 Terry and Jane Shaw
• 6 Priscilla O’Reilly
• 8 Barbara McPherson
• 20 Ben and June Evans
• 23 Ed Barna
• 24 Tina Conn
• 24 Dave and Marikka Guay
• 25 Ann Ovitt
• 26 Virginia Brackett
• 27 Steve and Susan Miyamoto
• 27 Dan Brock
• 28 Anthony and Pat Daniels
• 31 Ben Evans

January

• 4 Don Prideaux
• 12 Jim Patch
• 15 Dan Castellini
• 29 Bill Jeffrey

Feruary

• 2 Bill Caswell
• 8 Conrad Nagengast
• 12 Joe and Ruth Nelson
• 14 George and Tina Conn
• 14 Bob Cassidy
• 21 George Longenecker
• 23 Pauline Prideaux
• 24 Marge Converse
• 24 John Weaver
• 26 David Guay

      In late October, 145 letters and ballots were sent out to each membership in the VCBS. If you did not receive your ballot, please be sure to let us know. As of this writing, only 56 of these ballots have been returned. Please remember, it is very important that you return your ballots. If you have not done so, please drop them in the mail as soon as possible. Thanks!

Return to Top

Dear Members       As I have stated before, volunteers are the lifeblood of our organization. Welcome to Suzanne Daniels as she joins the Board of Directors replacing Joe Nelson as Director of the Membership Standing Committee. Trish Kane will continue as Membership Coordinator. Joe will continue as a member of the committee supporting both Suzanne and Trish. Suzanne's main thrust will be in creating materials to support visits to schools to teach the next generation about the value of our covered bridges and preserving them.       Joe Nelson will continue as Director of the Communications Committee supporting our newsletter editor Steve Wheaton, collecting news and maintaining the website.       We are still looking for a Director of the Crafts Committee, running the sales table at meetings and other occasions, collecting covered bridge mementos for sale or display: books, postcards, and sundry donations from members and the public. It would be good if someone would volunteer to take this function over. Knowledge of, or interest in, archiving would be a plus for a candidate.       Also we need someone to be a Bridge-watch chair for the Lyndon-Danville area. At a very minimum, semi-annual bridge watch inspection site visits and reports are required. Our Handbook describes other duties.       John Weaver, President VCBS Return to Top Attention Covered Bridge Postcard Collectors If you are interested in one of the Special Commemorative Hyde Hall Covered Bridge postcards that were recently produced in honor of the Hyde Hall Celebration, please contact Trish Kane at: bobtrish68@frontiernet.net. She only has a very limited supply of the cancelled cards left, so be sure to get your postcard while you still have the opportunity to do so. Those of you who have already seen this postcard know it is stunning and will be a welcome addition to anyone's collection. The cancelled cards are $2.00 each and once they are gone, will not be reproduced. Uncancelled cards are $1.00 each. Postage for up to three cards is $.87. For more information, contact Bob and Trish directly. Return to Top The VCBS "Patch" Still Available!       The "must have" VCBS iron-on patches are still available for sale at a modest $3.50.       The profits go to the VCBS Jim Fearon Save-Bridge-Fund to help fund the VCBS mission advocating the preservation of covered bridges. The patches are for sale through the web site; www.vermontbridges.com/market.place.htm and are available at all VCBS meetings.       You can also order your patch from Joe Nelson. Send $3.50/patch and a self addressed, stamped envelope to P.O. Box 267, Jericho, VT 05465. (up to three patches can be sent to you with a 39-cent stamp.)       The patch depicts the "Bridge-at-the-Green" in West Arlington, Vermont, the covered bridge and chapel familiar to us all, it being one of the most photographed of the state's scenic places. The initials "F.C." at the bridge portal honor designer Francis Converse.       The design began as a pencil drawing donated by the late Francis Converse way back before the first VCBS Annual Meeting was held in November 11, 2000. The drawing was ultimately digitized in full color on an iron-on patch 3.5" in diameter. Return to Top THE NORTHEAST POW /MIA NETWORK       The goals of our organization is the return of all LIVE American POW/MIAs, repatriation of the remains of those who have died, and explanations for cases where the two options do not exist.       Great attention paid to maintaining physical reminders of the issue's continued significance. The international logo's appearance on flags, pins, decals, articles of clothing, and accessories bolsters awareness. Wearing POW/MIA bracelets honors those individuals who still wait and evokes conversations on the issue.       We are involved in presentations with schools, veterans' organizations, and through a broad spectrum of events allowing us to convey our concerns to the public. We are involved in the legislative process, as we attempt to provide protection for those who serve our Country, and for their families and loved ones should loss occur. We attempt to address the needs of families and returned POW/MIAs, and assist in coordinating activities with associated groups and promoting information flow.       We are a volunteer organization, veterans and non-veterans, using awareness, communication, education, legislation, and compassion to assuage the pain associated with one of the most devastating outcomes of service to one's Country. As we honor POW/MIAs, returned and still waiting to come home, we aggressively pursue means to return the missing and protect those serving.       Don Amorosi, NY Chair Vets Serving Vets 1-518-792-2057 Return to Top Joe Nelson, P.O Box 267, Jericho, VT 05465-0267 This file created December 29, 2006