Pennsylvania – Covered Bridges (Sep 4, 2020)

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Even though we were in Allentown for almost two weeks, it seems we were very busy. One day we decided to take Mike’s nieces, Emma and Mykaela, on a cover bridge tour. This was a great day spending the say with them.

Even though we started early, we did stop for lunch and you can see below the chicken finger dish that Emma ordered. This “chicken fingers” included chicken breasts! We even checked with the waitress to make sure we ordered the chicken finger appetizer and she confirmed that this dish was the appetizer and were chicken fingers. Needless to say, Emma had leftovers.

Emma’s Chicken Finger Appetizer

During the day, we travelled from Kempton, PA to as many cover bridges as we could. The roughly 200 historic covered bridges can be found all over Pennsylvania. And, while Lancaster County has the most, at 29, there are historic covered bridges to be found in more than half of the state’s counties. Of course we didn’t try to visit 200 of them but were able to visit a few.

Schofield Ford Covered Bridge with the Emma and Mykaela
Hard to read but this shows that the bridge was created in 1873 “crossing from Northampton Township meant fording Neshaminy Creek” which was close to where this bridge stood. The original bridge stood for 118 years before a fire destroyed it in1991. However, the community rebuilt in six years and was reopened in 1997.
This sign says that this bridge was once known as one of the “kissing bridges” because young couples used to shaded passages to steal a kiss”.
We are fans of Barnwood Builders so we have a new appreciation for the handiwork that it takes to build these bridges. In this picture, you can see the pegs that hold this bridge together.
These were cutout in the bridge to look over the water. Wonder if this was one of the kissing areas.
Side view of the bridge.
While looking for another bridge, we came across this monument at the Washington Crossing Historic Park n Solebury Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Washington Crossing Historic Park is a 500-acre state park This area may have been a lookout point for General George Washington’s troops to watch the banks of the Delaware River for enemy activity. Incredible concrete reproduction of the crossing.
Close up picture pulled from the web since we were not able to get close.
At the park are 13 flags shown above that represent the original colonies.
Van Sandt Covered Bridge (sometimes spelled Van Sant) was built in 1875 south of New Hope, near Washington Crossing Historic Park. There are rumors that Van Sant’s bridge could be haunted. The bridge is allegedly a “cry baby bridge” where a young woman killed her child and then herself. n the case of the Van Sant Bridge, the story goes that if you park your car in the middle of the bridge you can hear not only the wail of the poor forlorn babe, but also the toes of the hanging woman scraping your car roof. One intrepid ghost hunter, however, surmises that the crying sound actually comes from red foxes that apparently inhabit the area.
Loux Covered Bridge in Pipersville, PA. It was built in 1874 by David Sutton out of hemlock in the Town Truss style. This is one of the shorter covered bridges in Bucks County at only 60 feet long.
Cabin Run was built in 1871, and is 15 feet (4.6 m) wide and has a length of 82 feet (25 m). The Town truss bridge crosses the Cabin Run (creek) downstream from the Loux Covered Bridge. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 1, 1980.
A picture captured from the internet when the red was vibrant.
The Uhlerstown Covered Bridge is a single span town lattice truss bridge located in Tinicum Township. It was build in 1865 and rebuilt in 1985. Constructed of oak in 1855, the Uhlerstown Covered Bridge has windows on both sides and is the only covered bridge in Bucks County that crosses the Delaware Canal. It is named for Michael Uhler, a canal boat builder and the first postmaster who founded Uhlerstown.
Knecht’s Covered Bridge in Springfield Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. It crosses Cooks Creek on Knecht Bridge Road south of Springtown. Built in 1873 in the town truss style, the bridge is 110 feet long and 15 feet wide
Mood’s Covered Bridge was a historic covered bridge located in East Rockhill Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. It crossed the East Branch Perkiomen Creek. Built in 1874 in the town truss style, the bridge was 120 feet long and 15 feet wide.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 1, 1980. It was destroyed by arson on June 22, 2004, and subsequently removed from the National Register of Historic Places. The wooden cover was subsequently rebuilt and the bridge reopened on February 15, 2008.

That wraps up our day visiting covered bridges with our nieces, Emma and Mykaela. It was a great day.

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