Skip to main content

Pittsburg-Clarksville Covered Bridge (Bacon Bridge) - Pittsburg and Clarksville, New Hampshire


One of the more deliciously named covered bridges in the Granite State, the Pittsburg-Clarksville Covered Bridge (also known as Bacon Bridge for its location on Bacon Road) is the furthest north covered bridge situated on the Connecticut River in New Hampshire. The covered bridge crosses the border between the towns of Clarksville and Pittsburg, the latter being better known for being the Snowmobiling Capital of New England and at one time being the short lived Republic of Indian Stream, a small microstate of about 300 citizens during the 1830s.

The Pittsburg-Clarksville Bridge is 89 feet long and built in a Paddleford truss design. This bridge is one of seven covered bridges built in Pittsburg and one of three that remain standing. It is assumed that the bridge was constructed in 1876, by a reference in town records which states "In 1876, money was raised to build a bridge at Fletcher's Mill", with Fletcher's Mill being a sawmill that had existed near the site of the bridge since 1825. Therefore, it is assumed by town officials that this is the date of the present day covered bridge.

There was a payment issue regarding the bridge's construction as well. In 1878, the Town of Clarksville was approached by Pittsburg officials to see what the town would do about paying the Town of Pittsburg for building two thirds of the bridge near Fletcher's Mill. Clarksville voted not to pay the Town of Pittsburg anything for the bridge's construction at that time. It was rehabilitated in 1974 at a cost of $6,700, with the costs of rehabilitation being shared between the towns of Pittsburg and Clarksville, along with the State of New Hampshire. Now eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, the Pittsburg-Clarksville Bridge was closed to vehicular traffic in 1981, but you can still walk across the bridge as a pedestrian. There is a small waterfall known as Fletcher Falls and the remains of the old mill that you can view from the bridge itself.









How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
Pittsburg-Clarksville Bridge - New Hampshire Covered Bridges (NHDOT)
Covered Bridges of the White Mountains - White Mountains New Hampshire
Clarksville Covered Bridge - Bridgehunter.com

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Cajon Pass; Cajon Pass Toll Road, National Old Trails Road, US Route 66/91/395 and Interstate 15

This past weekend I spent some time in Cajon Pass traversing the many historic road alignments. Cajon Pass is located in San Bernardino County, California along the San Andreas Fault.  Cajon Pass  serves the boundary line between the Mojave Desert, the San Gabriel Mountains, San Bernardino Mountains and San Bernardino Valley.  Cajon Pass is historically one of the most traveled transportation corridors in American California and presently is served by four rail lines, Interstate 15 and California State Route 138. While Cajon Pass is known mostly for carrying US Route 66 it has carried numerous other signed highways that have had a significant impact on regional and national road travel.  While this is my best attempt to compile everything from the best sources I could find into one single transportation history blog regarding road travel in Cajon Pass I suspect as time goes on this article will be frequently updated.  If you have any information that you ...

Pardee Dam Road

Pardee Dam is a 358-foot-high concrete structure located near Campo Seco at the Calaveras County and Amador County Line.  Pardee Dam impounds the Mokelumne River which forms the namesake Pardee Reservoir.  Pardee Dam was completed during 1929 and is part of the East Bay Municipal Utility District.  Pardee Dam is accessed by the namesake Pardee Dam Road which crosses the structure via the one-lane road seen as the blog cover photo.   Part 1; the history of Pardee Dam Road The closest community to Pardee Dam is that of Campo Seco on the Calaveras County side of the Mokelumne River.  Campo Seco was founded in 1850 by Mexican Miners who worked placer claims in Oregon Gulch during the height of the California Gold Rush.  Campo Seco would reach a population of about three hundred by 1860 spurred by the numerous mining claims in the area.  Main Street of Campo Seco flowed directly into the Campo Seco Turnpike which had been authorized by the California L...

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...