Skip to main content

Maple Street Covered Bridge - Fairfax, Vermont

Image
By

 


Also known as the Fairfax Covered Bridge, the Maple Street Covered Bridge spans 57 feet across the Mill Brook along Maple Street in Fairfax, Vermont. The bridge was initially built in 1865 by Kingsbury and Stone, utilizing a Town Lattice truss design for the covered bridge. This covered bridge appears wider than many covered bridges in Vermont, owing to its 17 foot wide deck width and low clearance.

The Maple Street Covered Bridge was almost lost due to flooding in early November 1927, following a very wet October in northern New England. During the late morning and early afternoon on November 3, 1927, rainfall records were set for both hourly density and single storm totals. It was estimated that a cubic mile of water had been lifted off the Atlantic Ocean and deposited on Vermont as a result of a dissipating tropical storm. Four of the five covered bridges that were located in Fairfax, Vermont were destroyed, with the only bridge being saved was the covered bridge on Maple Street. That bridge was taken off its abutments and drifted downstream, where it rested against some trees. After the bridge was brought back to its abutments after the flood, it was thought by some people that the bridge was reinstalled with its original east end facing west, which makes it seem to lean. Perhaps the idea was to get the bridge operating again quickly, given that all of the other covered bridges in town had been destroyed.

The covered bridge was rehabilitated in 1990 and 2002 by Jan Lewandowski of Restoration and Traditional Building, who has worked on several covered bridges across Vermont. Repairs were made to the upper chord, truss web, king posts, roofers, and rafters in the 2002 restoration, which was deemed necessary after a truck driver caused damage to the bridge. With that restoration, the bridge's lean was also repaired. Today, you can find the Maple Street Covered Bridge in an idyllic setting that meshes well within the village center of Fairfax.





How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
Bridgehunter.com - Fairfax Covered Bridge 45-06-02
Vermont Covered Bridge Society - The Maple Street Covered Bridge
VTGrandpa.com - Fairfax, Vermont and the Flood of November 1927
Labels:
Location: Fairfax Covered Bridge, Maple St, Fairfax, VT 05454, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

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

By
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 ...
1 comment
Read more

Pardee Dam Road

By
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...
2 comments
Read more

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  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...
Post a Comment
Read more