Covered Bridges on Two Wheels
A photographic journey to Vermont's Covered Bridges
Shelburne Museum Bridge
 September 2013 |  November 2009 |
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 November 2009 |  November 2009 |
In my account of visiting the Spade Farm Bridge, I noted that it was arguably one of the most viewed covered bridges in the state. The Shelburne Museum Bridge is right up there with it.
Located in Shelburne Village, right off Route 7, thousands of vehicles pass it every day. So much so, that most residents probably barely notice this rare gem.
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Originally located in Cambridge, Vermont, the bridge was moved to its current location in 1950 when it was bypassed by a new bridge known by locals as the "Wrong-Way Bridge".
Current Status: Pedestrian Only, with paid admission
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Location: Shelburne Village, off Route 7
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Crosses: Burr Pond
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GPS: 44.376945N, 73.229557W
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Built: 1845 Length: 164.5 feet
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Truss Design: Burr arch
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WGN*: VT-04-06 NRHP**: No
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* WGN: World Guide to Covered Bridges Number
**NRHP: Listed on National Register of Historic Places
Construction of the "Wrong-Way Bridge"
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Courtesy of the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration
At the same time, another bridge located just down the road was deemed unnecessary due to a river re-routing project. The Shelburne Museum, already successful in moving historic buildings to the grounds, asked if the State would be willing to donate one of the bridges to the museum. The State agreed (as long as the museum paid for the move). Not surprisingly, the rare double-laned bridge was chosen. The other bridge was spared and became the Gates Farm Bridge.
The photo on the right was taken during the project that made the Museum Bridge obsolete. It shows both this bridge (right side of photo) and the one-lane Gates Farm bridge (left) in their original locations. Both were moved during this project, but luckily they were also both spared. Click on the photo to see it full-size.
The bridge was dismantled and then re-assembled on the present site at the museum. A man-made pond (Burr Pond) was dug to provide a nice setting (otherwise it would have been just sitting over dry land). For many years the bridge served as the main entrance to the museum but was closed in the 1970s due to over-stress and the entrance was moved to the south. The bridge is still in use by the staff however.
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There is a covered walkway attached to the bridge, but it is not original to the bridge, being built only sometime later (but prior to) the move.
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The Burr arch bridge has had a slew of names. While it was located in Cambridge, it was known as the Cambridge Bridge (which doesn't exactly roll off the tongue), the Cambridge Village Bridge (which might be worse), the Village Bridge, the Big Cambridge Bridge, and Big Bridge. The latter two names distinguished it from its little "sister" just down the road. Personally, I think for ease I would have called it the Big Bridge if I lived there. In its present location it is sometimes just called the Museum Bridge.
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Surprisingly, the bridge is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Typically, this does not happen when the bridge is privately owned. Nor when the bridge is no longer in its original location. However, the criteria for inclusion do not automatically exclude the bridge due to these conditions. And the fact that there are so few two-lane bridges left, I would think it is significant enough. There is no real advantage to having a historic location listed on the National Register (it doesn't protect the site from destruction, or provide federal funding for upkeep, etc) but it doesn't hurt either.
Visiting the bridge:
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The bridge is gated off, so you can not actually enter it (legally) without paying admission to enter the museum grounds. But you can get right up to it. Parking is available directly outside of the bridge on Route 7.
I don't think they mind people parking there, but if you don't want your car in the picture, you might have to find an alternate place to park (there are many businesses, churches and the town offices within easy walking distance).