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Henniker Road, Merrimack County

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Inventory Number: NH/29-07-62x
County: Merrimack County
Township: Hopkinton
Town/Village: West Hopkinton
Bridge Name: Henniker Road
Crosses: Contoocook River
Truss type: Briggs Triple Lattice
Spans: 1
Length: 164'
Roadway Width: 17.0'
Built: 1862
Builder: John C. Briggs
When Lost: 1936
Cause: Replaced
Latitude: N43 10.82
Longitude: W071 45.13
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: A little north of the present US202/NH9 crossing 1/4 mile east of the Henniker town line.

Henniker Road Bridge, Hopkinton, NH (1862-1935)
Richard E. Roy Collection

Comments:
On May 14, 1862 the town voted to build a wooden bridge on stone abutments over the Contoocook River on the new road to Henniker to replace a stone bridge lost in the spring 1852 freshet. The cost was not to exceed $2500. The Town did not want to replace it citing insufficient travel, however, they were ordered by the court to do so. Hopkinton’s Town Report for 1862 lists a payment of $1,450.00 to John C. Briggs “in part for bridge.” A project was already underway to replace the bridge when it was damaged by flooding in March 1936. The bridge continued its service in a damaged condition until being replaced by a steel through truss slightly north of the covered bridge location. The road was relocated in 1960 and this crossing abandoned.

Sources:
History of Hopkinton New Hampshire, 1890, page 169
Knoblock, Glenn A.. New Hampshire Covered Bridges, 2002, pages 16, 81

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