Dimmsville Covered Bridge 38-34-02
Description
http://www.lewistownsentinel.com/news/local-news/2017/04/loc...Lewistown (Pa.) Sentinel - April 17, 2017
MAZE — The 115-year old Dimmsville covered bridge collapsed into Cocolamus Creek recently.
The 100-feet-long and 15-feet-wide Greenwood Township bridge had been the focus of a group of concerned locals who at one point, were trying to raise money to restore the bridge.
However, after clearing some obstacles, others still remained.
Stephanie Bates, who helped organize the Dimmsville Bridge Preservation Project, said the bridge collapsed on April 11.
Bates said she sees no reason to continue the Dimmsville Bridge Preservation Project at this point in time.
“Part of our mission was to educate those in the community who lack an appreciation of its architectural beauty, and to ignite a desire to preserve it. We had very little support,” she said. “For those of us who had a genuine affection for this irreplaceable historical place, we were outnumbered by a majority of folks who just simply didn’t care.”
Bates said that without the cooperation of the Fred Ferguson Estate, who owns the surrounding land, they could not make any headway.
“We realized this before the bridge even fell, and closed our campaign with GoFundMe in February,” Bates said. “Refunds were issued. Cash donations will also be returned as soon as we track down who they are.”
Bates said at this point, the bridge remains in the creek and after calling the Department of Environmental Protection, it referred her to the local township.
“The bridge could create an artificial dam in the creek, and will damage the integrity of water over time, being that it’s painted with lead based paint. I see no positive outcome,” she said. “The bridge was one of four remaining covered bridges in Juniata County. It was something to be proud of.”
The Dimmsville Bridge Preservation Project was not the first project of its kind in Juniata County. In 2009, after many years of work and fundraising, the Pomeroy-Academia Covered Bridge was restored.
The engineering group that helped restore the Pomeroy-Academia Covered Bridge was assisting with the Dimmsville bridge.
http://lewistownsentinel.com/page/content.detail/id/580875/D... March 7th, 2016 - Lewistown (Pa.) Sentinel
MAZE - The Dimmsville Bridge Preservation project cleared its first hurtle during a recent Greenwood Township meeting.
The bridge, which is in danger of collapsing, was built in 1902 and is 100 feet long and 15 feet wide, spanning Cocolamus Creek.
Stephanie Bates, who is leading the charge to restore the bridge said the township supervisors agreed to accept ownership of the bridge, setting the stage for the Fred Ferguson Estate of Greenwood Township, the supposed current owner, to deed the bridge to the township.
However, Bates along with other members of the preservation project team are still researching the history of the bridge to make sure the deed transfer is accurate between the entities involved.
Greenwood Township Supervisor Gary Fronk said everyone is trying to work out the specifics right now.
"We are in the growing pains right now, there is a lot of paperwork to do," he said.
Bates said a township or municipality has access to federal and state grants which is why the transfer is so important in moving forward with the project.
[More at link while available]
Facts
- Overview
- Lost Covered bridge over Cocolamus Creek on PA 2017 west of Seven Stars
- Location
- Juniata County, Pennsylvania
- Status
- Collapsed on April 11, 2017
- Future prospects
- Ownership transfer was under way to transfer from private ownership to township prior to restoration when collapse occurred
- History
- Built 1902, Collapsed into creek on April 11, 2017; remains removed from site
- Design
- Covered Burr arch-truss
- Dimensions
-
Span length: 108.0 ft.
Total length: 108.0 ft.
Deck width: 15.0 ft.
- Recognition
- Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on August 10, 1979
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +40.60631, -77.13856 (decimal degrees)
40°36'23" N, 77°08'19" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 18/319071/4497253 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Millerstown
- Inventory numbers
- WGCB 38-34-02 (World Guide to Covered Bridges number)
NRHP 79002245 (National Register of Historic Places reference number)
BH 31048 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- May 15, 2017: Updated by Alexander D. Mitchell IV: Additional information added
- April 17, 2017: Updated by Tony Dillon: Bridge collapsed April 11, 2017
- March 7, 2016: Updated by Alexander D. Mitchell IV: Ownership transfer under way to transfer from private ownership to township prior to restoration
- March 4, 2014: Photo imported by Dave King
- December 18, 2006: Posted photos from Jack Schmidt
Sources
- Jack Schmidt - jjturtle [at] earthlink [dot] net
- Dale Travis Covered Bridge List
- Wikipedia
- Alexander D. Mitchell IV
- Tony Dillon - spansaver [at] hotmail [dot] com
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/pa/juniata/dimmsville/
Tony,do you know why or how it collapsed?