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Columbia
County, Pennsylvania
(WGN
38-19-10) (WGCB PA-19-10): (1875; repaired 2007-08)
A single-span Burr arch truss 106' 3" over Huntington Creek. Located
on Covered Bridge Road (TR 563), east of Forks, Fishing Creek Township,
Pennsylvania. Directions: In Forks, Pennsylvania at the jct.
of SR 487 and SR 1020, go east on SR 1020 for 1.4 miles to Covered Bridge
Road. The bridge is just to the left on Covered Bridge Road.
Named after the Hess family who owned a sawmill and farm nearby it was
built at a cost of $1,349.50. The Structure is covered with vertical
board and batten siding and rests on stone and mortar abutments with wing
walls. It has a sheet metal roof and a deck of runners laid over
crosswise planking. There is a long center window on the east side
and short windows at the southwest and southeast ends as well as lengthwise
openings under the eaves. The bridge was closed to traffic in 2000.
Also known as the Laubach Covered Bridge. On
Wednesday June 28, 2006, the bridge was badly damaged and in danger of
collapse after record rains eroded the abutment on the south side downstream.
When the West Paden Covered Bridge (WGN 38-19-12)
was washed away, it did not show that the Josiah Hess Covered Bridge was damaged
because the abutments were under water. The bridge was sagging at
6:30 PM Friday on the south end. When revisited on September 17,
2006, the bridge had been stabilized and under repair. The log used
to stabilize the structure can be seen on the left side at the entrance. In 2007-08 the damage to the structure was repaired and it has been repainted.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 29,
1979. (Apr 2006/Sep 2006) |
