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Cecil
County, Maryland
(WGN
20-07-01) (WGCB MD-07-01): (1860; restored 1959; repaired
1990; under rehabilitation 2009) Single-span multiple Kingpost truss
with Burr Arch 119' 6" over North East Creek. Located: In Bay
View, Maryland on a bypassed section of Northeast Road. Directions:
From I-95, at exit 100 take SR 272 north 1.2 miles to the bridge, on the
right. Alternate directions: From jct. US 40 (Pulaski Highway)
and SR 279 (Elkton Road) in Elkton, Maryland take US 40 (Pulaski Highway)
12.2 miles west to right on SR 222 (Perryville Road) 1.2 miles to left
on SR 272 North 1.2 miles to the bridge on the right.
Built in December 1860, at a cost of $2,000, near several mills.
Gilpin's Falls and remnants of the millrace are just downstream of the
bridge. It is the only authentic Maryland covered bridge that is
closed to all traffic. It was bypassed by the concrete bridge, just
upstream, between 1930 and 1937. The roof collapsed from the heavy
snows of early 1958 and the entire structure was near collapse when it
was restored in 1959 by the joint efforts of the State of Maryland Road
Commission and the Historical Society of Cecil County. Further extensive
repairs were made, including repainting, in 1990. In February 2009,
the first stages of the rehabilitation of the bridge had begun. Completion
date not known. Is the longest authentic covered bridge in Maryland.
The bridge has a twelve-panel single-post, multiple Kingpost truss sandwiched
between double Burr arches. The arches are unusual in that they are
each made from two separate pieces of timber. The sides and portals
are covered with faded barn red painted siding open under the eves for
ventilation and there one framed horizontal window opening, opposing, along
each side. The bridge has a shaker roof and severely weathered plank
siding. The floor has diagonal planking and a shaker roof. The bridge
is again in need of repair with a serious sag on the downstream side, and
the abutments under the Burr arch, also on the downstream side have broken
away. It has locked iron gates on both entrances with a sign stating:
"KEEP OFF/BRIDGE UNSAFE." Also known as the
Bayview Covered Bridge
and the
Gilpin Covered Bridge. (Jun 2008) |
