The "The Covered Bridge: Lancaster's Hidden Gem Part I" Story

A couple walk into the Pinetown Covered Bridge in Lancaster County.

It was an ordinary day.  Walking across the Pinetown Mill Covered Bridge in north-central Lancaster County, Pennsyl- vania talking with a man and wife who were photographing and documenting the location as well as the truss type of the bridge in their 3-ring notebook.  I was doing much the same thing as they were doing, but it was in my own backyard while the couple were from Centre County, Pennsylvania, a few hours to the north-west of Lancaster.  

This is one of my altered Polaroid photos I have done.
The bridge featured here is in Lancaster County Park. 

They told me they have documented and taken photos of most of the covered bridges in south-eastern Pennsylvania, but were finding the 29 covered bridges in Lancaster were taking them longer than they had expected.  Lancaster County, PA has the second most covered bridges of any area in the United States.  They tend to be Lancaster's hidden gem, since they bring many tourists and historians to the area to visit and help with the local economy.  Just for your information, Parke County, Indiana has the most covered bridges with 31.  All of Lancaster's covered bridges are listed on the National Register of Historic Places except for three, and carry the numbering prefix of 38-36 for those interested in that fact.  Very seldom do I go on a photo shoot where I don't cross a bridge or find I need to wait for an Amish buggy to cross before I can enter the one-lane bridge.  The earliest documented covered bridge in Lancaster County dates back to 1824 when Christian Brackbill built the 102 foot long Neff's Mill Covered Bridge located close to the center of the county.  It was of burr arch truss construction which is the type of construction used on all but the Landis Mill Covered Bridge which was built in 1873.  

This shows the burr arch truss design used in most Lancaster
County, P covered bridges.  Arches can be seen on both sides
of the interior of the bridge.

That type of construction is referred to as multiple king post construc- tion.  The accompany- ing photos show what the burr arch truss construction looks like as well as a bridge in Columbiana County, Ohio that features the multiple king post construction.  

This covered bridge in Ohio shows an interior which features
the multiple king post style of construction.

In the 1800's there were about 1,500 covered bridges in Pennsyl- vania, but that number has decreased to slightly over 200 bridges today.  Almost all covered bridges were built from wood, since it was a relatively inexpensive and easy to acquire.  Most bridges had a roof which provided protection from the weather and made the lifespan of the bridge much greater.  Over the years fires and floods have destroyed many covered bridges which were replaced with either concrete or steel structures.  

This is the Neff's Mill Covered Bridge which is the oldest
covered bridge in Lancaster County having been built in 1824.

In 1972 a number of Lancaster's bridges were either destroyed or badly damaged by Hurricane Agnes.  The Willow Hill Covered Bridge, running about 50 feet parallel to busy SR30, was built in 1962 and is the youngest of all the covered bridges in Lancaster County except for some bridges which have been repaired since then with new beams.  Tomorrow I will post photos of five of Lancaster's beautiful wonders and give you some information about the dates, construction type and builder of the bridge.  If you have ever driven through a Lancaster County covered bridge, you know how thrilling and adventurous you feel as you clear the opposite end wonder how people ever survived without the gaudy concrete and steel bridges that carry our mass transportation in today's world.  It is truly a trip back in time and history not to be missed by anyone.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.