Buskirk Bridge is a wooden

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 ...

and is the name of the hamlet in which it is located. It is in the town of Hoosick. The bridge, which crosses the

Hoosic River The Hoosic River, also known as the Hoosac, the Hoosick (primarily in New York) and the Hoosuck (mostly archaic), is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed October 3, 2011 tri ...

is one of 29 historic covered bridges in New York State. The bridge takes its name from the nearby hamlet of the same name, which was named after the local Van Buskirk family.

Town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and

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 ...

designs were patented by

Ithiel Town Ithiel Town (October 3, 1784 – June 13, 1844) was an American architect and civil engineer. One of the first generation of professional architects in the United States, Town made significant contributions to American architecture in the f ...

in 1820 and William Howe in 1840, respectively. The Buskirk Bridge a Howe truss design, and was built to replace a previous Burr arch truss. It is perhaps the earliest Howe truss bridge that survives in New York State.The MPS document at one point seems to contradict itself, saying the "Town truss type is represented...by the bridges at Buskirk and at Rexleigh" and also it "is the earliest Howe truss bridge surviving in New York State" (page 3), but elsewhere it is clear that the Buskirk and Rexleigh bridges are both of the Howe truss design. A topographic map of its location appears in its individual inventory document prepared by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation in 1977. It is one of four Washington County covered bridges submitted for listing in 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 ...

in a multiple property submission. The others are the Rexleigh Bridge, the Eagleville Bridge, and Shushan Bridge. All four were listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 8, 1972. The bridge continues in use for vehicles, and is maintained jointly by Washington County and

Rensselaer County Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the ...

References

External links

Buskirk Bridge, at New York State Covered Bridge Society

{{Hudson River Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Bridges completed in 1850 National Register of Historic Places in Rensselaer County, New York Wooden bridges in New York (state) Bridges in Washington County, New York Tourist attractions in Washington County, New York Tourist attractions in Rensselaer County, New York Bridges in Rensselaer County, New York Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Howe truss bridges in the United States