Kidder Covered Bridge, Grafton Vermont
- Categories:
- Vermont
- Covered Bridges
- Queenpost Truss
The Kidder Covered Bridge is the only 19th century covered bridge remaining in Grafton township. Among the covered bridges of Windham County, it is the shortest bridge and the only example of queenpost truss construction. The Kidder bridge is one of the few bridges in Vermont to have been built on a skew.
Vermont's covered bridges are among the state's most cherished and symbolic historic resources. About one hundred bridges still stand in the state, the greatest concentration by area of covered bridges in the country.
Bridge Description
The Kidder Covered Bridge consists of a single span supported by two flanking timber queenpost through trusses. Iron suspension rods augment the vertical timbers in the trusses. Timbers, joined longitudinally by steel plates, have been added to the bridge under the trusses. The bridge has the form of a parallelogram, with a skew of 15 degrees from the perpendicular between the flanking trusses. The abutments which support the ends of the bridge are constructed of stone slabs faced with concrete. The bridge is 66 feet long and 15 feet wide, with a 12-foot roadway.
On the exterior, the heavy timbers which form the queenpost trusses of the bridge are sheathed with flush boards hung vertically. Similar siding protects the ends of the trusses immediately inside the portals. There are no windows or openings in the siding. The gable ends are flat and sheathed with vertical flush boards. The roof of the bridge is covered with corrugated metal sheeting.
