The Smolen–Gulf Bridge is a
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 ...
which carries State Road (Ashtabula County Road 25) across the
Ashtabula River at the
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymout ...
and
Ashtabula Township line in northern
Ashtabula County
Ashtabula County ( ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson. The county was created in 1808 and later organized in 1811. The name Ashtabula deriv ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
. At 613
feet (182.9
meter
The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pr ...
s), it is the longest covered bridge in the United States – a title formerly held by the
Cornish–Windsor Covered Bridge in
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
– and the fourth longest covered bridge in the world.
["] The bridge, one of 17 drivable covered bridges in the county, was designed by John Smolen, former Ashtabula County Engineer when the idea of bridging the Ashtabula River Gulf with a wooden structure was first conceived in 1995.
[Nation's longest covered bridge to be dedicated]
", '' Star Beacon'', posted August 20, 2008
History
The county's 17th publicly accessible covered bridge cost approximately $7.78 million to build,
[Commissioners OK higher bridge costs]
, '' Star Beacon'', published September 02, 2006 and features walkways along both sides. It is constructed of four sections
[Getting Ready for Dedication"]
, '' Star Beacon'', posted July 15, 2008 that rest on concrete abutments and three concrete piers, and rises more than over the river, carrying two lanes of legal-weight traffic.
[Under way, but a long ways to go]
, '' Star Beacon'', published October 10, 2007 The bridge consists of pieces of
Douglas fir
The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are thre ...
or
yellow pine
In ecology and forestry, yellow pine refers to a number of conifer species that tend to grow in similar plant communities and yield similar strong wood. In the Western United States, yellow pine refers to Jeffrey pine or ponderosa pine. In the ...
, with
hemlock or
yellow poplar being used for the siding.
The builder was Union Industrial Contractors and Koski Construction.
The bridge is located east-southeast of
Ashtabula
Ashtabula ( ) is a city in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States, and the center of the Ashtabula micropolitan area. It is located at the mouth of the Ashtabula River on Lake Erie, northeast of Cleveland. As of the 2020 census, the city had ...
, at the same location as the previous bridge which carried State Road across the Ashtabula River. The old bridge, a steel bridge built in 1949 (National Bridge Inventory number 0430714), replaced the Crooked Gulf covered bridge (number 35-04-01) built in 1867.
[
The bridge was dedicated the afternoon August 26, 2008, where the name was unveiled.]State Road Covered Bridge
State Road Bridge is a covered bridge spanning Conneaut Creek in Monroe Township, Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The bridge, one of currently 17 drivable bridges in the county, is a single span Town truss design. Constructed of of souther ...
located along a different "State Road" (C-354) over Conneaut Creek in Monroe Township, which is the reason for the name chosen for this bridge.)Riverview Covered Pedestrian Bridge
The Riverview Covered Pedestrian Bridge is a wooden Pratt truss covered bridge built beneath the Smolen-Gulf Bridge, completed in 2016. The new pedestrian covered bridge is long and wide. It is a Pratt truss design, like the Smolen-Gulf Bridge ...
opened below the Smolen–Gulf Bridge in 2016.
Gallery
See also
*List of covered bridges in Ashtabula County, Ohio
The following is a list of covered bridges in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. Ashtabula County has the most public covered bridges – currently 19 – of any county in Ohio, with six having been newly constructed since 1983. Self-drive ...
**West Liberty Covered Bridge
The West Liberty Covered Bridge is a covered bridge which carries West Liberty Street across Cowles Creek in Geneva, Ohio, United States. At , it has been called the shortest covered bridge in the United States. The bridge, one of 17 drivable cove ...
in nearby Geneva, shortest drivable covered bridge in the United States
References
External links
Scans of opening day brochure
*
* Includes documentary information.
*
. Ashtabula County Covered Bridge Festival website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smolen-Gulf Bridge
Covered bridges in Ashtabula County, Ohio
Bridges completed in 2008
Road bridges in Ohio
Wooden bridges in Ohio
Pratt truss bridges in the United States