Part 2

A third feature of interest is that while most of the old bridges followed the same lines of construction, no two were precisely alike. Many writers have emphasized the fact that each bridge has a certain individuality. Nor was this individuality lacking in attractiveness. Some of the structures were architecturally beautiful with an old-time charm.

Crude as were the methods and materials employed, the old bridge builders left monuments to their skill. The bridge across the Schuylkill River near Philadelphia, built in 1813, had a span of 340 feet in length. When constructed, it was the longest span in the world. Another long bridge was at Charlemont, across the Deerfield River near the scene of the famous massacre of settlers by Indians in the early New England days. It was 324 feet long.

The covered bridges cost from $300 to $6,500. They were built by towns, individuals and companies. Often a lottery provided the cost of construction.

As on the old turnpikes, toll was charged on many of the bridges. The rate for a foot passenger was two cents; for a cow, two cents; one sheep, one-half cent; a horse, four cents; horse and rider, six cents; cart, sleigh, sled, or wagon and one horse, ten cents; two horses, thirteen cents; wood per cord, fifteen cents; all other loads with one horse, ten cents.

Most of the private companies operating covered bridges fared exceedingly well. Some bridges paid as high as 18 to 20 per cent a year.

The exaction of tolls created bitter opposition in many communities and became an issue in politics. The Lyman covered bridge between Hartford, Vermont, and Lebanon, New Hampshire, completed in 1804, was known as the “Inter-State Hold-Up” because the tolls were so exorbitant. Even ministers were forced to pay to cross the bridge.

So deep-seated was the unrest over toll charges that in many instances the tolls were withdrawn. The first free covered bridge across the Connecticut River, where the earliest of the bridges was built, was opened to the public in 1859. This bridge, which spanned the river between Norwich, Vermont, and Hanover, New Hampshire, was built by the two towns at a cost of $6,500. It was 400 feet long and stood 40 feet at low water.

The classic covered bridge story and the perennial delight of all writers on the subject deals with a farmer who drove up to a long bridge with a load of hay on the way to market. He stopped at the entrance and squinted down the dark tunnel. Then he said:

“I can git through this end all right, but there ain’t room to squeeze through that little hole at the other end.” With this remark he turned his team and drove back home, his hay unsold.

Another anecdote is connected with the “Walk Your Horses” sign at the entrance of the Hartford covered bridge. A woman was summoned to court for disobeying this injunction. She hired a clever lawyer and contested the case. When it was called in court the lawyer said:

“Your Honor, the law reads that a fine be imposed on any man who drives a horse across the bridge faster than a walk. I move that this case be thrown out. My client is a woman and she was driving a mare.”

The case was dismissed.

The covered bridge served purposes for which it was not originally intended. On wet nights it became a sort of informal community center. Preachers, on occasion, used it for camp meetings. The local militia drilled in it. Once a school teacher, whose little red schoolhouse burned down, held some of her classes under its shingled roof.

The story of the covered bridge is not altogether a narrative of the past. No one knows accurately just how many were standing at the peak of their use. One thing, however, is certain. There was a time when the entire New England countryside and a considerable portion of the rest of the country, was dotted with covered bridges. They crossed streams in twenty-six states. One reason why they were so widespread lay in the fact that when New Englanders, the first builders, moved west or south, they constructed the same type of bridge that they had known and found satisfactory back home.

One of the most zealous of the covered bridge historians has computed that there are still 2,000 of the old structures intact and still in use. Ohio ranks first with 592 bridges and Pennsylvania next with 336. Indiana has 202. Vermont with 200, has more covered bridges than all the other New England States combined. Massachusetts, where many of the earlier bridges were built, today has 26, while Connecticut is at the bottom of the list with only 7.

Of the 2,000 bridges still standing, many have unique names and associations. The second Lyman bridge, which replaced the “Inter-State Hold-Up,” was called the “Bridge of Spooks.” It was dimly lighted at night by swinging kerosene lamps. Children avoided it after sunset and grownups went through in a hurry.

One of the oldest and most noted of the covered bridges is Esperance bridge on the famous Mohawk Valley Turnpike on which all stagecoach traffic in and out of Albany, New York, traveled. The first bridge on this site was built in 1793 and was destroyed by a freshet. The present structure went up in 1811, the second to be erected by the State of New York. No covered bridge ever earned more money. The tolls by 1846 amounted to $1,000,000. More than 700 teams crossed in a single day. In view of its long and fruitful history New York has preserved the bridge as a state monument.

Most of the covered bridges are gone but they are not forgotten. Their distinct place in the category of early Americana is widely recognized. Many have become museum pieces. States and individuals are conserving them. Henry Ford’s collection of covered bridges at Dearborn, Michigan, is the largest in the country. The inclusion of a covered bridge in Carillon Park is recognition of its status in the evolution of American life.

The diorama in the Wagon Shed presents a composite picture of some of the Carillon Park exhibits as they would have appeared in actual use. The three-dimensional, accurately scaled model shows a canal boat approaching a lock. Passengers sitting on the top deck are dressed in the costumes of the day. The boat is the packet type designed to carry passengers and representing in its day a considerable degree of luxury in travel.

In the background is a covered bridge and to the left, an old mill built beside a stream. At the right a settler’s cabin typifies the rural housing of the day and the settler, himself, watches the boat pass. Traveling the road beyond the canal is a Conestoga wagon and a Concord coach.

Thus, against the background of the rich countryside which made possible the great development of the Miami Valley, are many of the elements which contributed to the way of life of its early settlers.

CARILLON PARK DAYTON, OHIO

One of a series of Carillon Park booklets. Price ten cents.

E15SS PRINTED IN U.S.A.

Transcriber’s Notes

—Silently corrected a few typos.

—Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.

—In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.