The Burkeville Covered Bridge is a historic
covered bridge
A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...
, carrying Main Poland Road over the South River in
Conway, Massachusetts
Conway is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,761 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Conway was first settled by English colonists ...
. Probably built in 1870, it is a regionally rare example of a multiple kingrod bridge with iron tensioning verticals (a modified
Howe truss
A Howe truss is a truss bridge consisting of chords, verticals, and diagonals whose vertical members are in tension and whose diagonal members are in compression. The Howe truss was invented by William Howe in 1840, and was widely used as a bridg ...
system), and one of a few 19th century covered bridges to survive in Massachusetts. It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1988.
Description and history
The Burkeville Covered Bridge stands in the formerly industrial village of Burkeville, west of the center of Conway, carrying Main Poland Road over the South River just south of
Massachusetts Route 116
Route 116 is a north–south (though in its northern part it is more east-west) state highway in Massachusetts. The route runs from Route 20A in Springfield through mill towns, college towns and rural towns, crossing the Connecticut River th ...
. It is of kingrod truss construction, with a total truss length of and a roadway width of (one lane). It is covered by a gabled metal roof and its sides are finished in vertical board siding. Its wooden trusses, in contrast to
kingpost truss
A king post (or king-post or kingpost) is a central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs, working in tension to support a beam below from a truss apex above (whereas a crown post, though visually similar, supports items above fro ...
es, have wrought iron verticals which transmit the active load to the top chord of the truss. In some places, fittings of the trusses have either been replaced or reinforced by steel components.
The first bridge on the site is thought to have been built in 1850, when Main Poland Road was rerouted to accommodate changes in the water impoundments for the industrial facilities then active in Burkeville.
[ The present bridge was built in 1870 after that bridge was damaged in a major flood the previous year.]1938 New England hurricane
The 1938 New England Hurricane (also referred to as the Great New England Hurricane and the Long Island Express Hurricane) was one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to strike Long Island, New York, and New England. The stor ...
weakened it, and it underwent major repairs. In the following years, its stone abutments were faced in concrete.[ Its roof partially collapsed under heavy snow in 1975, but was restored by town volunteers.][ It was closed for safety reasons in 1985, and reopened to vehicular traffic in November 2013 after renovations.]
See also
*
*
* Arthur A. Smith Covered Bridge, Colrain
References
External links
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Bridges in Franklin County, Massachusetts
Tourist attractions in Franklin County, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Franklin County, Massachusetts
1870 establishments in Massachusetts
Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Wooden bridges in Massachusetts
Conway, Massachusetts