Covered Bridges on Two Wheels
A photographic journey to Vermont's Covered Bridges
Mount Orne Bridge
 July 2013 |  July 2013 |
|---|---|
 July 2013 |  July 2013 |
Current Status: Open
Location: Lancaster, NH and Lunenburg, VT
on Mt Orne Road
Crosses: Connecticut River
GPS: 44.460139N, 71.652709W
Built: 1911 Length: 266 feet (2 spans)
Truss Design: Howe
WGN*: NH-04-08#2, VT-05-03#2 NRHP**: Yes
* WGN: World Guide to Covered Bridges Number
**NRHP: Listed on National Register of Historic Places
The Mount Orne (or Mt. Orne) Bridge is one of the handful of multiple span covered bridges you will run across in Vermont. Some single-span bridges have had center piers installed to help support a single span, but this is a case where two separate spans meet at a central pier. The second photo in the slideshow above shows where the two ends of each truss span meet (the horizontal posts).
The current bridge dates from 1911 when it replaced a bridge that was destroyed by a log jam in 1908. During the years in between, ferry service took the place of the missing bridge. The 1911 bridge was built by Charles Babbitt, the same builder as the Columbia Bridge to the north. It also uses the same Howe truss design. As with all Connecticut River bridges, the state of New Hampshire owns the majority of it. The bridge has been known as the Lunenburg-Lancaster Bridge, but that's a pretty clumsy moniker.
In 1983 it was closed for a complete rehabilitation by the State of New Hampshire (which accounts for the second date on the Vermont-side sign). This bridge has had a checkered past with over-sized vehicles. In 1969 a fully loaded salt truck fell right through the floor and landed on the frozen river below. On two different occasions a tractor trailer (a what?) tried to negotiate the bridge. The latest incident occurred in 2010 when the driver's GPS device led him on that route. Of course you have to wonder, once you see a narrow one-lane bridge with low clearance, why would you try to cross it in a tractor-trailer?
The truck caused extensive damage to the bracing and upper chords. It was repaired, but during the repairs more problems unrelated to the crash were found, and the bridge remained closed to all traffic. Funds were secured to finish the other needed repairs which commenced in January of 2012 and were completed in March.
Visiting the bridge:
The roads leading to the bridge on either side are paved. A good parking area is available on the west end (Vermont side) of the bridge, as well as a wide spot where a farm field access road connects. On the New Hampshire side there is a widened shoulder which is not ideal, but it would work. I simply parked my small-footprint motorcycle on the shoulder at a stop sign.
This bridge is long... one of the longest you will encounter in Vermont... so it may not be the greatest idea to cross it on foot. I guess it depends on the perceived traffic at the time. When I visited, traffic was light, however a car or two passed on the bridge while I was in it and I felt there was enough room for me to be there, and I had no fear of being hit. If in doubt, you can always hop up on the guardrail that runs the length of the bridge.