Skip to main content

Bath-Haverhill Covered Bridge - Woodsville, New Hampshire


The Bath-Haverhill Covered Bridge (also known as the Haverhill-Bath Covered Bridge) over the Ammonoosuc River in Woodsville, New Hampshire is one of the Granite State's oldest existing covered bridges. Built using a Town lattice truss design, the covered bridge is 256 feet long and has two spans of 105 feet and 121 feet in length, along with a pedestrian walkway on the upstream side of the bridge. It is located parallel to a modern crossing of the river located on NH 135.

In March of 1827, the voters of Bath, New Hampshire appointed a committee to hold discussions with the selectmen of the neighboring town of Haverhill, New Hampshire regarding the site of a bridge between the two towns. Then, in September of 1828, the town of Bath had set aside $300 to purchase stone and timber for a covered bridge to be built between the two towns over the Ammonoosuc River. In March 1829, Ariel Miner was given the position of superintendent, but upon his request in June of that year he was released from this position and replaced by Moses Abbott and Leonard Walker. The covered bridge was completed later in the year at a cost of $2,400 between the two towns and opened to the traffic of the day, namely pedestrians and horses or oxen carrying carts and carriages.

The Bath-Haverhill Covered Bridge has survived many mishaps over the years to become one of the oldest covered bridges in New Hampshire and the United States of America. In 1927, a large tree trunk pierced the side lattice of the bridge and during that same flood, a barn floating down the river jammed against the side of the bridge. As luck would have it, the bridge withstood the damage. But decades of wear and tear took its toll on the bridge. In 1973, the bridge was repaired at a cost of $38,710. Then, ice damaged the structure in the winter of 1980 and the bridge was repaired by the state in March of 1981 at a cost of $8,000. The covered bridge was the subject of unthinkable mischievousness, as someone unsuccessfully attempted an act of arson to burn the bridge on the night of September 11, 1983. As a result, the citizens of Bath and Haverhill mounted a fund drive to repair the bridge. The bridge was bypassed for vehicle traffic in 1999 but is open to pedestrians. Before being bypassed the bridge carried traffic for a period of 170 years, which is a lot for a little covered bridge. The bridge itself is across the street in a little cul-de-sac, and was rehabilitated in 2008, now serving just foot traffic. The bridge was bypassed for vehicle traffic in 1999 but is open to pedestrians. The Bath-Haverhill Covered Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as well, owing to its historic nature. I've managed to visited the Bath-Haverhill Covered Bridge on a few occasions over the years, enjoying the nearby scenery and the quiet, still nature of this wonderful treasure.


Looking into the portal of the covered bridge. It is no longer open to vehicles, but it is perfect to walk around and explore.


There is a dam just upstream of the covered bridge on the Ammonoosuc River.




Woodsville can be seen behind the covered bridge as well.

 

I also happened to visit the bridge in 2005, which was before the covered bridge was rehabilitated to its current state.





How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
The History of Bath - Covered Bridges
New Hampshire Bridges - Bath-Haverhill Bridge
NHTourGuide.com - Haverhill-Bath Covered Bridge NH
Bridgehunter.com - Bath/Haverhill Covered Bridge 29-05-04
Wanderlust Family Adventure - Haverhill – Bath Covered Bridge (Woodsville, New Hampshire)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...

Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80.   This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail.  Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range.  The first documented wagon crossi...

Former US Route 50 and the South Lincoln Highway from Folsom east to Placerville

The corridor of Folsom of Sacramento County east to Placerville of El Dorado County has been a long established corridor of overland travel dating back to the California Gold Rush.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor was once part of the path of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road which became the first California State Highway and later the South Lincoln Highway.  In time the South Lincoln Highway's surface alignment was inherited by US Route 50.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor also includes the communities of; Clarksville, Shingle Springs and El Dorado. Part 1; the history of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road, South Lincoln Highway and US Route 50 through Folsom-Placerville Folsom is located on the American River/Lake Natoma of eastern Sacramento County.  That lands now occupied by the City of Folsom were part of Rancho Rio de los Americanos prior to the finding of gold at Sutter's Mill during 1848.  During the California Gold Rush the lands of Rancho Rio de los Americanos were p...