Historic Covered Bridges

At the end of the 19th century, there were more than 1,400 covered bridges in rural communities across Canada. Today, only an estimated 140 remain.

Opened in 1901 and covered in 1922, New Brunswick’s Hartland Bridge is the longest of its kind in the world, spanning 391 meters. An engineering marvel, it boasts seven heavy-timber Howe trusses supported by six piers.

Also known as the Percy Bridge, Quebec’s Powerscourt Bridge, built-in 1861, is one of Canada’s oldest covered bridges and the only known example of the McCallum inflexible arched-truss design that is still in existence.

The Félix-Gabriel-Marchand Bridge, extending 152 meters from end to end, is Quebec’s longest covered bridge and one of its oldest. Built-in 1898, it is unique in the province for its combination of Queen Post and Town lattice trusses.

Ontario’s last remaining historic covered bridge, the 60-meter West Montrose Bridge – opened in 1881 over the Grand River – features Howe trusses and louvered window openings.

The Ashnola No. 1 railroad bridge measuring 135 meters across British Columbia’s Similkameen River, was completed in 1907 and rebuilt in 1926 with its Howe trusses sheathed in wood paneling and cross-bracing exposed overhead. It was converted for automobile use in 1961.

Europa – Bridges

The “Alte Rheinbrücke Vaduz” (Old Rhine Bridge Vaduz) and the “Fussgängerbrücke Balzers“ (Balzers Footbridge) (face value: CHF 1.50 each) are adorning Liechtenstein’s Europa stamps this year. Member states of the trade association PostEurop, which represents European public postal operators, issue stamps on a common theme every year. The theme in 2018 is bridges.

On the stamp showing Balzers footbridge, he captured the snow-capped, 2,562-metre-high Falknis mountain in the background.

The Old Rhine Bridge Vaduz used to serve as the main route connecting Liechtenstein’s main town Vaduz and neighbouring Switzerland. It is 135 metres long and is the last wooden bridge still intact that crosses the Alpine Rhine. Originally built in 1870/71 and reconstructed on the pillars of the previous bridge in 1900/01, it was completely renovated for the last time in 2009/10. On this special stamp Vaduz Castle can be seen on the opposite side of the valley from between the massive pillars of the listed structure.

Bridges bring together

It is not yet 150 years since Liechtenstein and Switzerland, the two countries separated by the Rhine as border-marking river, were first brought together by shared bridges.

Before that people and goods were conveyed between the Liechtenstein and Swiss banks of the Rhine by ferries, five of which were still operating at the beginning of the 19th century. Only after physical structures controlling the course of the Rhine had been put in place was it possible in 1867-68 to build the first wooden bridges, at that time still uncovered, between Bendern and Haag and between Schaan and Buchs. The first part of the “Bridges bring together” series illustrates in greater detail two of these bridges, which have since been a characterizing feature of the Rhine valley.

The “Old Rhine bridge” (CHF 0.85) between Vaduz and Sevelen (“Vaduz-Sevelen”, face value CHF 1.00), which used to be the main link between Vaduz and neighbouring Switzerland, was built in 1870-1871. After it had had to be raised twice in the following years, in 1900-1901 it was re-built on the piers of its predecessor. Since the mid 1970s the Old Rhine bridge has been accessible only to non-motorized traffic.

The last major renovation was completed in 2010. The “Railway bridge” (face value CHF 1.40) between “Schaan-Buchs” (face value CHF 1.90), which later became a subsection of the famous “Orient Express”, was first crossed in 1872 by a train drawn by a steam locomotive belonging to the “Vorarlberg Railway”. In the devastating flood disaster of 1927 the section of the bridge on the Liechtenstein side plunged into the water. In 1934-35 the present-day 190-metre-long steel bridge was erected on the river pier of the collapsed bridge. The stamps’ face designs are based on photographs by Bruno Kopfli from Eschen.

Source: Liechtenstein Post

Stamp Issue: 2013.06.03

Arlington Green Bridge

The scenic Arlington Green Bridge in Bennington County, Vermont, takes center stage in this Priority Mail stamp. One of the most-photographed covered bridges in the state, it was built in 1852.

The digital stamp art depicts the red wooden bridge against a backdrop of autumn leaves. On the far side of the bridge, a white church steeple rises from a traditional village green. The bridge spans the Batten Kill trout stream in Arlington, just off Route 313 in southern Vermont. Although it stretches 80 feet across the stream, the bridge’s roadbed is only wide enough to allow one lane of traffic to rumble over its wooden planks at a time.

Stamp Issue: 2013.01.25