Vermont's Covered Bridges
Covered bridges have become a symbol of Vermont. Just a century ago covered bridges could be found all over the state. Vermont had over 600 of them around the state. They used to be called "kissing bridges", because if you played your cards right and reined in your horses, you could convince your sweetie to give you a little smooch.
Many people don't know why we needed a roof over our bridges. The large timbers that helpd up the bridge did not do well in the harsh elements of Vermont. If they were left uncovered, they'd begin to deteriorate in about ten years. Since getting those trusses in place was a might big chore, no one wanted to do it every ten years. Someone decided to cover the bridge to protect the trusses from the harsh weather. And, it worked. A covered bridge can last for centuries. Many towns charged a toll to cross. They even charged for livestock - ½¢ for a pig or sheep all the way up to 20¢ for a carriage with more than one horse.
Unfortunately, the flood in 1927 was very hard on Vermont's covered bridges, that spring flood took out hundreds of bridges. Since then, fire, ice storms and development have whittled the number down to only about 80 public covered bridges.
The covered bridges throughout the United States number only about 800 left, so Vermont still has a large proportion of them. Southern Vermont alone has 38 covered bridges. The next biggest concentration is in Central Vermont with 36. The Lake Champlain Region has 17. And the remaining 12 are up in the Northeast Kingdom. Lamoille County has the most with 13. There are a few private bridges and two over the Connecticut River that the state owned with New Hampshire, but New Hampshire claims them for themselves. If you want to look around for them, the Vermont Agency of Transportation has a pretty good map.
The Pulp Mill Bridge in Middlebury is the oldest covered bridge. It was built sometime around 1808 and measures 199 feet long. Around 1860, the town of Middlebury had to add additional arches to keep the two-lane bridge out of the river. Vermont's newest covered bridge was built in Tunbridge in 2004, replacing the original which was destroyed in an ice storm. Dummerston has our longest bridge, measuring 269 fee. And there are a pair of 37 footers, one in Randolph and one in West Windsor that tie for our shortest covered bridge.
If you're looking for more covered bridge news, check out the world's only covered bridge museum, the Vermont Covered Bridge Museum at the Bennington Center for the Natural and Cultural Arts.
| Contact Information | ||
| Name: | Vermont Covered Bridge Museum | |
| Address: | West Road at Gypsy Lane PO Box 260 | |
| City: | Bennington | |
| Phone: | 802-442-7158 | |
| Web Site: | http://www.benningtoncenterforthearts.org/VtCBM/ | |
| Hours: | 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Tue | |
| Admission: | $6.00 ($5.00 students and seniors) Under 12 free. | |
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