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Bridge St., Essex County

If you find errors in the data please contact Bill Caswell.

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Inventory Number: VT/45-05-08#2x / NH-04-16x
County: Essex County / Coös County
Township: Guildhall - Lancaster
Town/Village:
Bridge Name: Bridge St.
Crosses: Connecticut River
Truss type: Howe
Spans: 2
Length: 280'
Roadway Width:
Built: 1902
Builder: Berlin Construction Company
When Lost: 1950
Cause: Replaced
Latitude: N44 29.76
Longitude: W071 35.665
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: On US2.

Bridge St. Bridge, Guildhall, VT - Lancaster, NH. Built 1901 Replaced 1950
Richard E. Roy Collection

Bridge St. Bridge, Guildhall, VT - Lancaster, NH. Built 1901 Replaced 1950
Bill Caswell Collection

Bridge St. Bridge, Guildhall, VT - Lancaster, NH. Built 1901 Replaced 1950
Todd Clark Collection

Bridge St. Bridge, Guildhall, VT - Lancaster, NH. Built 1901 Replaced 1950
Richard Sanders Allen Collection, NSPCB Archives

Comments:
11-panel truss. The first bridge at this location was a toll bridge erected in 1805 and succeeded by another in 1823. In 1840 a “covered bridge with two piers” was built. In 1894, the towns of Lancaster and Guildhall purchased the bridge removing the tolls. That was replaced by a new covered bridge constructed by the Berlin Construction Company in 1902. Originally, the sides of the new bridge were only boarded halfway up. Later they were boarded higher. New Hampshire paid the bulk of the construction costs with Vermont only responsible for eight feet of the bridge. Per The Caledonian-Record (St. Johnsbury), November 29, 1950, "New Lancaster Bridge Opened To Traffic A new bridge on Route 2 at Lancaster, N. H., built by the states of New Hampshire and Vermont and the federal government, was opened to traffic yesterday, it was announced by Paul M. Stevens of St Johnsbury, district highway commissioner. Immediately afterwards dismantling of the old covered bridge next to the new span across the Connecticut River was begun. Construction of the new bridge was begun early last spring by the W. H. Hinman Co., of North Anson, Me., also contractors for St Johnsbury’s current street improvement program. The remainder of the work, including the painting of the bridge and surfacing of approaches, will be completed in the spring."

Sources:
The Caledonian-Record (St. Johnsbury), November 29, 1950.
Report of the Bridge Commissioners of the State of New Hampshire to the Legislature, December 31, 1906, pages 23-24
National Society For the Preservation of Covered Bridges. Covered Bridge Topics, Volume V, No. 2, June 1947, pages 4 & 7
Knoblock, Glenn A.. New Hampshire Covered Bridges, 2002, page 63
Conwill, Joseph D.. Images of America - Vermont Covered Bridges, 2004, page 127
Connecticut River Valley Covered Bridge Society. Bulletin, Volume X, No. 3, Winter 1964, page 4

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