Powerscourt Covered Bridge

Powerscourt Covered Bridge

Pont Percy
View (August 2005) looking upriver, from the West bank (Elgin)
Coordinates45°00′31″N 74°09′34″W / 45.00871°N 74.15953°W / 45.00871; -74.15953
Carries2-lane road (reduced to one lane + 2 sidewalks in 2010)
CrossesChâteauguay River
LocaleBetween Elgin and Hinchinbrooke
Characteristics
DesignMcCallum Truss
Total length51 m (167 ft)
Width6.2 m (20 ft)
Height8 m (26 ft) to top
Longest span26 m (85 ft)
Clearance above3 m (9.8 ft)
History
Opened1861
Statistics
Daily trafficAutomotive and pedestrian
Official namePowerscourt Covered Bridge National Historic Site of Canada
Designated1984
TypeClassified heritage immovable
Designated1987
Location
Map

The Powerscourt Covered Bridge is a covered bridge that takes the First Concession Road across the Châteauguay River in Hinchinbrooke, Quebec. It is also known as the Percy Bridge.

It was constructed in 1861, and employs the McCallum inflexible arched truss, developed by Daniel McCallum. It was the only McCallum truss bridge that was not a railway bridge, and since wooden truss railway bridges have all but been replaced with steel and concrete bridges, it is the last bridge of its kind in the world.[1] In 2009 it was fully restored to its original 1861 plans.[2]

It is supported on three masonry piers and the two spans are structurally independent of each other.[3]

The Powerscourt Covered Bridge was designated a National Historic Site of Canada[3] in 1984 because:

  • it is the only known example of a McCallum inflexible arched truss bridge still in existence;
  • it is one of the oldest covered bridges that exists in Canada.

The bridge was also named an Historic Monument of Quebec in 1987.[4] It was documented by the U.S. Historic American Engineering Record in 2003 with assistance from Public Works and Government Services Canada.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ Morgan, James. "Powerscourt, home to Canada's oldest covered bridge". NCPR. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  2. ^ Galbraith, Robert (2009). "Gallery: Powerscourt Bridge". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b Powerscourt Covered Bridge National Historic Site of Canada. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  4. ^ Pont couvert de Powerscourt. Canadian Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  5. ^ Behrens, Thomas M.; Hernandez, Naomi (2003). "Title Sheet - Powerscourt Bridge". Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Retrieved October 25, 2020.