1) The bottom chord and deck units
are full length - 130 feet! The truck managed to get to this corner about 1/4 mile from the bridge
but we had a problem getting around the corner. The far wheels are aligned to fall over a culvert
outlet and into a ditch! →
2) The solution was to fill the ditch
with timber cribbing and continue on
(successfully). →
3) The unloading took two cranes
due to the length. →
4) Some of the chords and
deck panels were banded together to make them stiffer to ship. Still pretty
limber! →
5) Threading the bottom chords
into place was really much easier this time for the Contractor after his experience on the
Downsville Covered Bridge. →
6) A person helps position the end
as it is threaded into place. →
As of yesterday (October 9th), the bridge trusses have been completed and the cribbing removed to allow it to set on its corners again! She stands straight, cambered and proud again to regain a single span status once more!
The roof framing is going in now. Glue-laminated floor beams will go in next week, then the old truss counters will be reinstalled. Then the deck panels and siding. The bridge will be rolled into place without its metal roofing (to avoid any wrinkles during the roll-in).
From: Pat Kane
To: "Joe Nelson (E-mail)"
Subject: Hamden CB Update
Date: Wed, 11 Oct 2000
Good morning, Joe!
I just wanted to let you know that Bob
and I visited the Hamden Covered Bridge on October 1st and the restoration work is coming
along quite well. I took some photos and thought you might like to see the progress to date. We
are very anxious to see it again in another month or so. Phil told me that they hope to move it
back across the water in mid-December. We both want to be there when that happens. What an
exciting day that will be! Trish
From: "Phil Pierce"
To: "Wayne Marshfield"
"Joe Nelson"
Subject: Hamden Steel Work
Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000 19:45:55 -0400
Hi folks - thought I ought to drop a note and clarify that tomorrow, during the delay between
the two loads of timber glulam members, the crane which will be there to unload the heavy
timbers, will set the temporary steel work over the river that will be used to support the roll-in of
the bridge back into position. The steel will be removed afterwards and is not permanent. Please
help us get the word out so that we can derail any concerns about it.
Thanks, Phil
From: "Phil Pierce"
To: "Wayne Marshfield"
"Joe Nelson"
Subject: Hamden long glue-laminated members
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 20:31:50 -0400
Hi folks - just a quick update. The glue-lam members are being shipped on Thursday - first
load should get to the bridge by mid-morning. A second load by mid-day.
The members, being only 130 feet this
time, are apparently not a real big deal to haul, yet I plan on following along just for fun.
Work continues. I will send Joe some
updated photos shortly for the web site.
Phil
Saturday, August 5, 2000
To: Pat Kane PKane@mail.colgate.edu
From: Phil Pierce ppierce@pronetisp.net
Cc: jcnelson@together.net, rjwil@borg.com
Hi Trish
We heard on Wednesday that SHPO made contact with Mike Lynch. Although I have not yet
spoken directly with Ken Markunas, he has left a message that confirms that Mike's review
included an evaluation of all of the proposed work and they continue to support the project with
no further changes. There will be no affect of its listing on the National Register.
Vindicated! Contrary to the mixed
press coverage, I feel that we should focus on the work and can stop worrying about some
perceived problem that doesn't exist.
Hamden Bridge tie beam
going in. →Work continues. At this point, they are working from the south end and are nicely started with some replacement members in place. We have determined that a few of the proposed members will not have to be replaced after all. But we have found a few others that are worse than initially determined. We trying to relocate some of the better existing members (scheduled for replacement due to high stresses) for replacement of others in worse condition nearer the center of the bridge where the loads are reduced. Since work continues across the bridge with replacement as necessary, we will not know for some time what the final mixture of old and new will be.
We the County have installed the steel sheet piling for scour protection of the abutments (which will be cut off lower following installation of concrete between it and the old footings). We have also worked with the Contractor to develop means for reinstalling the bridge using a roll-in procedure. We the County are providing the materials and have installed temporary steel I-shape members to serve as piling at the abutments. The Contractor will be installing the steel grillage structure in the future.
Hamden Bridge side view from
west. →
Hamden Bridge tie beam
going in →Monday, July 24, 2000
We are sure that most of you are now aware of the unfortunate accident that happened with the
Hamden Covered Bridge in Hamden, NY. It is certainly our hope that all covered bridge societies
will pull together and support the Delaware County Department of Public Works, and the
residents of the Town of Hamden in their efforts to restore the Hamden Covered Bridge and
return it to its original location. We are sure they would more than welcome your words of
encouragement, appreciate your positive suggestions, and welcome your support as they try to
deal with the recent events and the challenges that will face them in the months ahead. If you
would like more information on how to contact them, please let us know and we will be happy to
forward e-mail and/or mailing addresses on to anyone interested. The following is an official
statement issued by the Delaware County Department of Public Works. We thought you folks
might be interested in reading it.
Pat Kane (
pkane@mail.colgate.edu )
Statement from Delaware County DPW Regarding the Hamden Covered Bridge
"Fortunately, no one was hurt, when it could have been catastrophic. Let us start by sharing the
roles and responsibilities of yesterday. The Contractor developed the scheme whereby the bridge
was to be moved. He retained the Crane company to assist. The County observed, but was not in
control. Had we exercised "control" over the work, we would automatically assume all legal
liability for any result or injury. Therefore, even should we have assumed that we knew better
than the Contractor how to accomplish the action, it was in our mutual interest to allow the
Contractor to do his job.
As to the result, the bridge has been relocated on cribbing on the roadway. If you visit the bridge, you can see that it still appears to be a bridge, albeit with some missing components. We believe that the bridge can be rebuilt without alteration of our plans, other than to extend the work to repair the breaks using the same sizes of components and same connection details, as already exist in the plans. The Contractor performs superior work and we are confident that other than seeing more "lighter colored" timber, it will still be the same bridge.
The additional material will probably take some time to obtain, yet work can proceed with the material that he has already ordered and received. It would be difficult for us to predict the completion time - it is too early to guess.
As to what really happened - the load sharing between the two cranes experienced an unexpected load shift for reasons unknown at this time (and will probably remain unclear). The smaller crane was unable to compensate for the shift and had to let go or topple. The operator did a remarkable job at avoiding loss of life and the crane. Beyond this discussion, we can only offer speculation and try to assess blame, but do not think this would be conducive to anyone now. We are most thankful that we avoided a much more serious event. We can repair what happened.
Due to the intense interest of the local community, we are attempting to host a meeting with
the State Historic Preservation Office in the very near future to discuss the contract plans, intent,
and the ramifications of the accident. We are confident that we have acted prudently as the owner
of the bridge and confident that the damage can be repaired without undue difficulty. No
one feels any worse about the incident than the DPW officials and Phil Pierce - engineer, Bill
Kline - contractor, and John Payne - crane Owner/operator.
Thank you.
Thursday, July 20, 2000
I went to Hamden yesterday [July 19] to see the bridge being moved off the river. It went
well for a time. The bridge was over halfway across when it all started to come apart when the
near crane began to tip over. When the crane let the tension go on its side of the bridge the bridge
broke near the center and landed in the river. I will never forget the sound of that wood creaking
and snapping!
The broken part was sawed off
and almost half the bridge was set down in the river. Before I left, the section in the river was
lifted out and set on the road. The bridge is now in two sections with lots of broken and splintered
wood.
Dick Wilson
Joe Nelson, P.O Box 267, Jericho, VT 05465-0267, jcnelson@together.net
No part of this web site may be reproduced without the written permission of Joseph C.
Nelson
Photos furnished by Richard Wilson, Phil Pierce, and Patricia Kane.
This file updated October 13, 2000