Ellicott City Covered Bridge
Photo
Photo courtesy of Enoch Pratt Free Library Central Library, State Resource Center Baltimore, MD
License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND)
BH Photo #284209
Description
Third bridge at this location. Was constructed of white pine."June 7, 1914, the 200 foot long burr arch-truss covered bridge over the Patapsco River burned. The bridge was a replacement for the one lost in the 1868 flood and had spanned the river since 1870. It would be replaced by a concrete bridge which survived until the summer of 1972 when Tropical Storm Agnes came through. An article from The Howard County Times on June 8, 1914 read as follows: “Fire yesterday afternoon destroyed the old wooden covered bridge between Baltimore and Howard counties, leading from Grays to Ellicott City, causing an estimated loss of $20,000. The cause of the fire is unknown, but it is supposed to have started from gasoline which leaked from the tank of a passing automobile. Shortly before the flames were discovered by several persons in the vicinity of the burned structure an automobile was seen to pass through the bridge, followed closely by several young men in another machine, smoking cigarettes. It is thought that the tank of the first car dropped gasoline and the fire from a thrown cigarette ignited it. With a loud noise, as though an explosion had occurred, the bridge burst into flames. All efforts to save the bridge were unsuccessful and the Baltimore section fell into the river. Nothing remains of the other half but the charred timber and abutments on the Howard County side. The burning of the bridge will cause much inconvenience to the residents of Ellicott City and the farmers of Howard, Montgomery and Frederick counties, who use the Frederick road to reach the city markets with their products. Until it is replaced they will have to drive many miles out of their course, either to Ilchester or Hollofields, to cross the river and reach the city.”
Facts
- Overview
- Lost Through truss bridge over Patapsco River on Main Street
- Location
- Ellicott City, Howard County, Maryland, and Baltimore County, Maryland
- Status
- Destroyed by fire
- History
- Built 1868; Burned 1914
- Design
- Burr arch-truss
- Dimensions
-
Total length: 200.0 ft.
- Also called
- Ellicot's Mills Covered Bridge
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +39.26780, -76.79305 (decimal degrees)
39°16'04" N, 76°47'35" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 18/345318/4348027 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Ellicott City
- Inventory numbers
- WGCB 20-03-09#2x (World Guide to Covered Bridges number)
WGCB 20-13-06#2x (World Guide to Covered Bridges number)
BH 61075 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- June 7, 2020: Updated by Alexander D. Mitchell IV: Added history details
- May 26, 2014: Added by Luke Harden
Sources
- Luke
- Maryland Covered Bridges - Imagery + Info
- Alexander D. Mitchell IV
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