Essex County

Jay Covered Bridge - NY 32-16-01 Jim Ligon, Project Superintendent for Alpine Construction, LLC, reports that the Jay Covered Bridge has been completely rehabilitated and the project has been accepted by Essex County. And, the bridge looks fantastic! It is so nice to see the Jay Bridge back in pristine shape after such a long hiatus. It now awaits the construction and opening of a new bridge just downstream. When that work is completed the covered bridge can be set in place over the river.
       At this point, Alpine Construction is not involved in the contract.

Oneida County

Erwin Park Covered Bridge - NY-33-03 Photo by Trish Kane, October 11, 2004

Erwin Park Covered Bridge - NY-32-33-03 New York State has yet another authentic Covered Bridge in Boonville. Way to go New York! On November 19, 2004 the shell of the Erwin Park Covered Bridge was gently lifted and placed across the Black River Canal. As you can see in the photo, it is a Town lattice truss. It measures 70 feet long and although the bridge is quite capable of carrying modern day traffic, its primary use will be to transport pedestrians, bikers and snowmobiles. Plans are in the works to host a Black River Canal Museum at this site in the future. Congratulations to the Erwin Park Covered Bridge Committee on doing such a wonderful job on the construction of this covered bridge.

Rensselaer/Washington Counties

Buskirk Covered Bridge - NY 32-42-02/58-04 The Buskirk Covered Bridge is coming along nicely. Recently, engineers determined that more timbers and steel rods needed to be replaced than they had originally flagged. These items have arrived and installation has begun.

Ulster County

Mill Brook Bridge - NY-56-06. Photo by Bob Kane

Mill Brook Covered Bridge - NY- 32-56-06 (Formerly known as Grants Mill Covered Bridge.) At long last, the State and National Register of Historic Places certificate was presented to Hardenburgh town officials on October 9, 2004. Forty-nine people gathered that beautiful fall morning including Bob Vredenburgh and his wife, Sue. Bob, along with family and friends, was responsible for the rehabilitation of this bridge back in 1992. Please note that through an official proclamation by the Town of Hardenburgh, the name of this bridge has been changed to the Millbrook Covered Bridge.

Beyond New York

New Hampshire - Gorham Pony Truss - NH-29-04-P1 As reported in the September 29, 2004 Berlin Reporter, the rare Gorham Pony Truss bridge over the Moose Brook on the old Boston and Maine Railroad line was set on fire by arsonists on May 20, 2004. It was one of only a handful of such bridges left in the world. James Garvin, New Hampshire State Architectural Historian went before the NSPCB to see if the Society would help in the preservation. The Society hired Tim Andrews of Covered Bridges and Barns in New England to lift what was left of the shell and set it aside. Any salvageable parts are being preserved for possible use in the rehabilitation. Meanwhile, a replacement bridge has been constructed and temporarily put in its place.

Ohio - Rinard Covered Bridge - OH-35-84-28 This Washington County Bridge was a victim of Hurricane Ivan and was washed off its abutments on September 18, 2004. Although it seemed there would be nothing left of the bridge to salvage, at the request of the State Historic Preservation Office, the county engineer hired a contractor to try and salvage what they could of the bridge. With the help of federal funds, there is a possibility that the Rinard Bridge will be rebuilt within the next two years.

Oregon - Thanks to Bill Cockrell, we were very pleased to be able to view the new DVD/VHS Spanning Time: America's Covered Bridges that was recently released. And we highly recommend purchasing a copy of it! You will more than likely recognize many of the names and faces in the program such as: Bill and Linda Cockrell, Arnold Graton, Jan Lewandoski, Anne Lynk, Tom Walczak and David Wright. It is a fantastic program. For more information, contact Bill Cockrell of the Oregon Covered Bridge Society at 3940 Courtney Lane SE, Salem, OR 97302 or email him at: wildbill-salem@worldnet.att. Total cost including shipping is only $22. Please note there could be a 4-6 week delivery time.

Pennsylvania - Mood Covered Bridge - PA-38-09-07 Six young men, who admitted setting fire to the 130 year old covered bridge, will serve between 18 days to 23 months in prison. They will also pay restitution of approximately $66,000 each to cover the cost of the reconstruction of a new bridge. All six men were heading into their junior years in college. Certainly old enough to know better . . . and certainly old enough to be held responsible for their actions.

Covered Bridge Cabin with Glass Floor VA-46-70- a. Photo by Steve Pierce

Virginia - Leola and Steve Pierce report a very unique, and probably a one of a kind Modern Shelter built in 1989 in Powhatan County, VA. It is a little King post covered bridge that has been converted into a cabin. What is unique about this 12 x 24 Modern Shelter is that it has a glass floor so you can see the creek! It has been assigned a WG# of VA-46-70-a.

Leola and Steve also share some exciting news! The Virginia Covered Bridge Society will be hosting their very first Covered Bridge Weekend on Saturday, June 18, 2005 at the Bob White and Jack's Creek Covered Bridges in Woolwine, VA. Details are still being finalized, but save the date and plan on joining our covered bridge friends in Virginia for this exciting event.

Due to flooding from tropical storm Gaston in October, there was some significant damage to two of Giles County's Covered Bridges. Both the Sinking Creek VA-46-35-01 and the Link's Farm VA-46-35-02 Covered Bridges suffered damage to their bottom chords.

Other news

I always enjoy seeing our covered bridges in the news and other means of communication. Recently, I purchased a new American Heritage dictionary and one of their new features includes pictures to supplement the definitions of their words. Just for fun, I looked up covered bridges and to my surprise, there is a small photo of the Bob Salvi Covered Bridge, NH-29-02-13 next to the definition. What a pleasant surprise!

Here are three additional websites you can bookmark under your favorites:
Michigan: www.wmta.org/coveredbridges
Ohio: http://members.aol.com/jreinhl/OHBA.htm
New York: www.salem-ny.com (See points of interest section for information on Shushan, Rexleigh and Eagleville Covered Bridges.)

       Since our last update, there have been two significant enhancements to the Covered Spans of Yesteryear website. Data from the 1999-2004 series of Covered Bridge Topics articles about Maine covered bridges has been incorporated into the database. The resulting material was reviewed by experts in that area and further improved. That information is available on the website. The project has also been augmented by the addition of a mailing list. By joining the mailing list, you will be notified of updates as they happen. Members can also use this list to share information about covered bridges of the past. Go to www.lostbridges.org for more information.

       Currently, lists of bridges from New York, Ohio, Oregon, and Pennsylvania are in various stages of completion. This process includes adding the data to the database, proofreading it, and then distributing the list to people with extensive knowledge of the particular area for review and comment. Also, a collection of Vermont photographs and post cards is in the process of being scanned. Selections from Addison and Bennington counties are already available and others will be posted as they are completed.

       Information from many other states and provinces is still needed. As we mentioned in the last update, early editions of Topics mention 125 bridges in Georgia while only half of those have been documented so far. They also mention 50 bridges in Virginia while we only have details about 11. New Brunswick once had many more bridges than those remaining today. If you have additional information about these areas, please send it along. Although complete details of each structure is the ultimate goal, that is rarely possible. Any details will be greatly appreciated.