Covered Bridges of New Hampshire

Kim talks with Alan Rumrill, Executive Director of the Historical Society of Cheshire County. Alan shares the rich history of the lost bridges of the Monadnock area and why the remaining covered bridges are valued by the community. Links from the conversationHistorical Society of Cheshire CountyLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

Kim talks with  Warner historian Rebecca Courser about the namesake of the Dalton Bridge. Rebecca shares with us a history of the town of Warner, the Dalton family, and just who exactly the covered bridge was named after.Links from the conversationWarner Historical SocietyLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Dalton BridgeSupport the show

Kim talks with lifelong Swanzey resident Lee Dunham about the namesake of the Thompson covered bridge. Lee walks us through the exciting life of actor and playwright Denman Thompson and his production, The Old Homestead; and how integral the play has been to the town of Swanzey for over a hundred years.Links from the conversationThe Old Homestead2016 Article in the Keene SentinelDenman ThompsonThe silent film, The Old HomesteadLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the West Swanzey/Thompson BridgeSupport the show

Kim talks with two women who live on either side of the Columbia Bridge in northern New Hampshire. Columbia, New Hampshire, resident Stacey Campbell and Lemington, Vermont, resident Sharon Ellingwood White, share how the location of the Columbia Bridge has connected their two communities across the Connecticut River for almost two hundred years. Links for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Columbia BridgeSupport the show

Kim talks with Kaleigh Paré Shaughnessy, Executive Director of the John Greenleaf Whittier Birthplace, about the namesake of the Whittier Bridge in Ossipee. Kaleigh tells us the story of how a young Massachusetts poet transitioned from a fierce abolitionist to one of America’s most beloved fireside poets, and how his name became attached to a New Hampshire covered bridge.Links from the conversationWhittier BirthplaceLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Whittier BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews Francis Faulkner, Jr. of Swanzey, about his involvement in fundraising efforts to rebuild the Slate Bridge after it was destroyed by arson in 1993. Francis shares the many layers of funding through the process of town meeting and the community connection to covered bridges in Swanzey.Links from the conversationTown of SwanzeyLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Slate BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews  Marilyn Stuller of Langdon about her experience leading the fundraising efforts to save Langdon’s two historic covered bridges. Marilyn shares the story of the organic process that took fourteen years to complete and the value of preserving part of the tapestry of the greater Langdon community.Links from the conversationFarview FarmArnold M. Graton AssociatesTown of LangdonLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the McDermott BridgePhotos of the Prentiss BridgeSupport the show

Kim talks with Trish Kane, Collections Curator of the Theodore Burr Covered Bridge Resource Center in Oxford, New York. Trish shares a history of the center, the significance of its namesake, and her personal journey in the preservation of historic covered bridges. Links from the conversationThe Theodore Burr Covered Bridge Resource CenterThe Oxford Memorial LibraryCovered Spans of YesteryearNew York State's Covered BridgesNY State Driving Tour of Covered Bridges - Contact InfoLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

Kim talks with master bridgewright Arnold M. Graton of Holderness about his long career preserving and restoring historic structures, most notably, covered bridges.  Arnold shares his experiences utilizing nineteenth-century construction to both restore, and build, new covered bridges, not only in New Hampshire but across the country.  This is a rare interview with a true master whose impact on the New Hampshire covered bridge community is without precedence.  Links from the conversationArnold M. Graton AssociatesFull Project ListYankee Magazine Article - The Man Who Saves Covered BridgesThe Day - Mayflower II Restoration ContinuesLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Corbin BridgePhotos of the Durgin BridgePhotos of the Bump BridgePhotos of the Turkey Jim BridgeSupport the show

Kim talks with Steve Taylor of Plainfield about the importance of covered bridges in New Hampshire communities. Steve explains how a practical approach to bridge building has translated into part of our cultural cache and how important these covered bridges are not only to small towns but to the state as a whole. Links from the conversationStephen Taylor - New Hampshire Humanities Council100 Things You Should Do to Know the Real New Hampshire - NH MagazineSteve Taylor: Newspaperman, Farmer, and Public Servant - InDepthNHLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Meriden BridgePhotos of the Cornish-Windsor BridgePhotos of the Corbin BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews  New Hampshire Preservation Alliance Executive Director Jennifer Goodman about historic preservation efforts in the state and their impact on saving covered bridges.  Join us for a conversation about successful preservation efforts and how the Alliance celebrates this work.Links from the conversationNew Hampshire Preservation Alliance2020 Preservation Achievement Award Winner - Arnold M. GratonLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New Hampshire Support the show

Kim interviews Sandwich Historical Society Director Jim Mykland about the Durgin family of Sandwich and their namesake covered bridge. Learn about the Durgin's   influence on the political climate of Sandwich in the mid-nineteenth century as well as their role in the Underground Railroad.Links from the conversationSandwich Historical SocietyJane Varney Durgin BookLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Durgin Bridge  Support the show

Kim interviews engineer Sean James, Senior Vice President at Hoyle, Tanner & Associates in Manchester about the twenty-one month-long rehabilitation of the Bath Bridge in Bath, New Hampshire. Sean walks us through the process of carrying out a $2 million project on a 375’ covered bridge and shares some interesting stories he learned along the way. Links from the conversationHoyle, Tanner & AssociatesLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Bath BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews two people who were instrumental in the 2021 rehabilitation of the Bement Bridge in Bradford. Town Administrator Karen Hambleton and engineer Josif Bicja from Hoyle Tanner share their experiences with the project and walk us through a $1.6 million renovation of an historic covered bridge. Links from the conversationHoyle, Tanner & AssociatesTown of BradfordLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Bement BridgeCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

Kim interviews engineer Bob Durfee of DuBois & King about bridgewright Peter Paddleford and his unique truss design. Learn why even though it was never patented, the Paddleford truss dominated covered bridge construction in northern New England for many years. Today there are only 22 Paddleford covered bridges left in New England. Links from the conversationDuBois & King, Inc.The Paddleford TrussLong Truss PatentLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Swiftwater BridgePhotos of the Whittier BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews bridgewright Tim Andrews about the 1999 rehabilitation of the Ashuelot Bridge in Winchester.  This project won the first Palladio Award for covered bridges in 2003. Tim shares details about the work and interesting things they uncovered during the project.Links from the conversationGuidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Covered BridgesCovered Bridges and the Birth of American EngineeringLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Ashuelot BridgeCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

Kim interviews architect Christopher Marston, project leader of the  Historic American Engineering Record, and its National Covered Bridge Recording Project, through which over one hundred historic covered bridges were documented, including twelve in New Hampshire.Links from the conversationNational Covered Bridges Recording ProjectLibrary of Congress - HAER CollectionBurlington Charter for the Preservation of Historic Covered BridgesGuidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Covered BridgesCovered Bridges and the Birth of American EngineeringBipartisan Infrastructure Law - Bridge Investment Program (BIP) Fact Sheet Links for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

Kim interviews engineer Sean James, Senior Vice President at Hoyle, Tanner & Associates in Manchester about the Town Truss. This lattice truss design was first patented by Ithiel Town in 1820 and has since been regarded as one of the most significant developments in the history of covered bridges. Sean will explain why that is and tell us about some of New Hampshire’s Town Truss Bridges.Links from the conversationHoyle, Tanner & AssociatesLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Ashuelot BridgePhotos of the Slate BridgePhotos of the Haverhill Bath BridgeSupport the show

Kim interviews artist Craig Pursley, who lives and works on either side of the Bath Bridge in Bath, New Hampshire. Craig serves as a docent of sorts of the second oldest covered bridge in the state and shares local folklore and history of the historic landmark. Links from the conversationCraig Pursley, ArtistLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshirePhotos of the Bath BridgeCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show

For the inaugural episode, Kim interviews members of the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, including President Bill Caswell and co-vice presidents Bob Watts and Scott Wagner about their passion for covered bridges and their volunteer work with the NSPCB.  You’ll learn about preservation efforts, how to visit and photograph covered bridges, arson reduction efforts, research, and archival efforts, and how your donation to or membership in the NSPCB makes a difference in saving our historic covered bridges.Links from the conversationNational Society for the Preservation of Covered BridgesCovered Spans of YesteryearThe Covered Bridge Experience Facebook PageLinks for Covered Bridges of New HampshireCovered Bridges of New HampshireSupport the show