Gudgeonville Covered Bridge
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox bridge
| name = Gudgeonville Covered Bridge
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| official_name = Gudgeonville Covered Bridge
| other_name = Gudgeonville Road
| named_for =
| image = Gudgeonville Covered Bridge.jpg
| caption = The bridge before its destruction, July 2008
| coordinates = {{coord|41|58|56|N|80|16|01|W|display=inline,title}}
| locale = Erie, Pennsylvania, United States
| carries = Township 400
| crosses = Elk Creek
| owner =
| maint = Girard Township
| id_type = NBI Number
| id = 257207040040080
| website =
| design =
| length = {{convert|84|ft|m|abbr=on}}{{cite web |author=Federal Highway Administration |author-link=Federal Highway Administration |title=Place Name: Girard (Township of), Pennsylvania; NBI Structure Number: 257207040040080; Facility Carried: T-400, Gudgeonville; Feature Intersected: Elk Creek |publisher=Nationalbridges.com (Alexander Svirsky) |year=2007 |accessdate=September 14, 2007 |url=http://nationalbridges.com/nbi_record.php?StateCode=42&struct=257207040040080 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005082844/http://nationalbridges.com/nbi_record.php?StateCode=42&struct=257207040040080 |archivedate=October 5, 2008 }} Note: this is a formatted scrape of the 2006 official website, which can be found here for Pennsylvania: {{cite web |url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/nbi/2006/PA06.txt |title=PA06.txt |year=2006 |publisher=Federal Highway Administration |access-date=June 7, 2008 }}
| width = {{convert|14|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| height = {{convert|10|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| depth =
| number_spans =
| piers_in_water =
| load = {{convert|4.5|MT|ST|abbr=on|lk=on}}
| clearance_above =
| clearance_below =
| lanes =
| life =
| num_track =
| track_gauge =
| structure_gauge =
| electrification =
| architect =
| designer =
| builder = William Sherman
| fabricator =
| begin =
| built = 1868
| complete =
| cost =
| open =
| inaugurated =
| rebuilt =
| destroyed = {{end date and age|2008|11|08}}
| collapsed =
| closed =
| replaces =
| replaced_by =
| traffic =
| toll =
| extra = {{Infobox NRHP
| name =
| embed = yes
| nrhp_type =
| architect =
| architecture =
| added = September 17, 1980
| designated_nrhp_type =
| refnum = 80003491
| website =
| mpsub = Covered Bridges of Erie County TR
}}
}}
The Gudgeonville Covered Bridge was an {{convert|84|ft|1|adj=on}} long Multiple King-post Truss covered bridge over Elk Creek in Girard Township, Erie County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It was built in 1868 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 17, 1980.{{cite web |last=Claridge |first=John R. |location=Erie |date=December 27, 1979 |title=Gudgeonville Covered Bridge |work=National Register of Historic Places—Nomination Form |url={{NRHP-PA|H050772_01H.pdf}} |accessdate=January 13, 2010}} It was destroyed by arson on November 8, 2008.
It was the oldest of the three remaining covered bridges in Erie County. The bridge structure's sufficiency rating on the Federal Highway Administration National Bridge Inventory was only 14.6 percent and its condition was deemed "basically intolerable requiring high priority of corrective action".
History
= Construction =
The Gudgeonville Bridge was constructed around 1868 and was rebuilt in the early 1870s after a fire. The bridge was located in Girard Township and crossed Elk Creek. The bridge was built and designed by William Sherman. The foundation of the bridge is believed to be remnants of the Erie Extension Canal. The name of the bridge has been a mystery with some sources indicating that the bridge was constructed to provide access to a gudgeon factory.{{cite book |last=Domowicz |first=Geoffrey L |title=Girard: a canal town history |publisher=Arcadia |year=2003 |location=Charleston, SC |isbn=0-7385-2454-9 |pages=109–110}}{{cite book |last=Eiler |first=Linda Lee Hessong |title=Girard |series=Images of America |year=2005 |publisher=Arcadia |location=Charleston, SC |page=106}}
= Modern use and status =
The bridge had been damaged from numerous small fires and has been the site of constant vandalism over the years.{{cite news |last=McQuaid |first=Deborah |title=Graffiti mars historic covered bridge |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20021015&Category=FRONTPAGE&ArtNo=110150192 |date=October 15, 2002 |accessdate=September 9, 2007 |work=Erie Times-News}}{{cite news |last=Healy |first=Bob |work=Erie Times-News |title=Public opinion split on bridge |date=January 11, 2006 |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20060111&Category=NEWS02&ArtNo=601110398 |accessdate=September 9, 2007}} There were several proposals to dismantle the bridge and move it to a more secure location where it would not be vandalized. Another proposal was to build another bridge to bypass the original bridge, as it is too narrow to allow a variety of vehicles to cross it, including snowplows, fire trucks, and ambulances.
File:Gudgeonville Covered Bridge interior.jpg
Evans' 2001 Pennsylvania's Covered Bridges: A Complete Guide described the bridge to be "structurally sound," but its general appearance to be "most disappointing". The Federal Highway Administration National Bridge Inventory found the sufficiency rating{{Ref label|A|a|none}} of the bridge structure to be only 14.6 percent. It found that the bridge's foundations were determined to "scour critical," meaning that the bridge's foundations were "determined to be unstable for the calculated scour conditions," and that the railing "does not meet currently acceptable standards". Its overall condition was deemed "basically intolerable requiring high priority of corrective action", with an estimated cost to improve the bridge of $107,000 ({{inflation|US|107,000|2006|fmt=eq|r=-3}}).{{inflation/fn|US}}
= Destruction =
File:Burned Gudgeonville Covered Bridge.jpg
The Gudgeonville Covered Bridge caught fire around 1:40 am local time on November 8, 2008.{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Kara |title=Fire destroys historic bridge |date=November 9, 2008 |work=Erie Times-News |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081109/NEWS02/311099911 |accessdate=November 9, 2008 |archive-date=January 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090111103329/http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081109/NEWS02/311099911 |url-status=dead }} The blaze was determined by the Pennsylvania State Police to have been an arson. On December 17, the State Police arrested two suspects after they confessed to dousing the bridge in gasoline and setting it on fire.{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Kara |title=Police: Vandals burned bridge for 'fun' |work=Erie Times-News |date=December 18, 2008 |accessdate=December 18, 2008 |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081218/NEWS02/812189989/-1/}} The suspects were also involved in several other incidents in northern Crawford County and western Erie County.{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Kara |title=Bridge arson part of crime spree |work=Erie Times-News |date=December 19, 2008 |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008312199926 |accessdate=December 19, 2008 |pages=1B, 2B}} In August 2009, one of the arsonists was convicted and sentenced to 5 to 10 years in prison for the destruction of the bridge and for an unrelated charge.{{cite news |last=Palattella |first=Ed |title=Gudgeonville Bridge arsonist gets up to 10 years |date=August 27, 2009 |work=Erie Times-News |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009308269907 |accessdate=September 16, 2006}} The other arsonist was sentenced to {{frac|5|1|2}} to 14 years for the fire and for a string of other crimes.{{cite news |last=Thompson |first=Lisa |title=2nd defendant sentenced in arson of Gudgeonville Bridge |work=Erie Times-News |date=September 17, 2009 |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090917/NEWS02/309169894 |accessdate=September 18, 2009}}
= Replacement bridge =
{{section update|date=April 2024}}
File:Replacement bridge Gudgeonville Rd. May 2015 - panoramio (1).jpg
The remains of the bridge were lifted from its abutments and set in a nearby field and dismantled to allow for a temporary bridge to be built in its place on January 26.{{cite news |last=Bruce |first=David |title=Historic bridge comes down |work=Erie Times-News |date=January 27, 2009 |accessdate=January 27, 2009 |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090127/NEWS02/301279967/-1/ETN}} The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) would not allow an exact replica of the covered bridge as it still would not be up to code. The temporary, prefabricated bridge was erected in August 2009, funded by an insurance policy held by the township.{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Jackie |title=New structure 'fast fix' for Gudgeonville Bridge |date=August 12, 2009 |work=Erie Times-News |url=http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090812/NEWS02/308119909 |accessdate=January 13, 2010}} The new bridge was needed quickly as a permanent, concrete bridge would have taken three years to design and build. Without a bridge, traffic would have had to make a {{convert|2|mi|km|0|adj=on}} detour.
Bridge dimensions
File:Gudgeonville Covered Bridge north.jpg
The following table is a comparison of published measurements of length, width and load recorded in different sources using different methods, as well as the name or names cited. NBI measures bridge length between the "backwalls of abutments" or pavement grooves and the roadway width as "the most restrictive minimum distance between curbs or rails". The NRHP form was prepared by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), which surveyed county engineers, historical and covered bridge societies, and others for all the covered bridges in the commonwealth. The Evans visited every covered bridge in Pennsylvania in 2001 and measured each bridge's length (portal to portal) and width (at the portal) for their book. The data in Zacher's book was based on a 1991 survey of all covered bridges in Pennsylvania by the PHMC and PennDOT, aided by local government and private agencies. The article uses primarily the NBI and NRHP data, as they are national programs.
* Listed mainspan length only
{{clear}}
See also
{{commons category|Gudgeonville Covered Bridge}}
Notes
{{refbegin}}
:a. {{Note label|A|a|none}}The National Highway Administration established the sufficiency rating, which can vary from a low of 0 to a high of 100, as a way to prioritize federal funding for bridges. The rating is calculated based on "structural adequacy, whether the bridge is functionally obsolete, and level of service provided to the public".{{cite web |url=http://www.transportation.org/?siteid=93&pageid=2496 |title=Bridge Inspection Definitions |publisher=American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials |date=August 29, 2007 |accessdate=November 8, 2008}} Federal funds are available for replacement of bridges with a rating of 50 or below, while those with a rating of 80 or below qualify for rehabilitation.{{cite web |title=Bridge Sufficiency Ratings |url=http://www.transportation.org/sites/bridges/docs/Sufficiency%20Ratings%20Explained.pdf |publisher=Kansas Department of Transportation |accessdate=November 8, 2008 }}{{dead link|date=October 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} In 2007, Pennsylvania had 22,291 bridges over {{convert|20|ft}} long, of which 42.9 percent were either structurally deficient or functionally obsolete.{{cite news |title=State by State: 'Deficient' or 'Obsolete' Bridges |date=August 2, 2007 |publisher=NBC News |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20093413 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131011225915/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20093413/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 11, 2013 |accessdate=November 8, 2008}}
{{refend}}
References
{{Reflist}}
Category:2008 disestablishments in Pennsylvania
Category:Covered bridges in Erie County, Pennsylvania
Category:Demolished buildings and structures in Pennsylvania
Category:Demolished bridges in the United States
Category:Bridges completed in 1868
Category:Covered bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania
Category:Wooden bridges in Pennsylvania
Category:Bridges in Erie County, Pennsylvania
Category:Covered bridges in the United States destroyed by arson
Category:Arson in Pennsylvania
Category:National Register of Historic Places in Erie County, Pennsylvania
Category:Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania