Vilas Bridge

{{Infobox bridge

| name = Vilas Bridge

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| image = 34-Vilas-Bridge.jpg

|image_size = 300px

| alt = Vilas Bridge in 2008

| caption = Vilas Bridge in 2008

| coordinates = {{coord|43|08|07|N|72|26|25|W|display=inline,title}}

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| carries =

| crosses = Connecticut River

| locale = between Bellows Falls, Vermont and North Walpole, New Hampshire

| official_name = Charles N. Vilas Bridge

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| design = open-spandrel deck arch bridge

| material = concrete

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| length = {{convert|635|ft|m}}

| width = {{convert|24|ft|m}}{{cite web|title=Vilas Bridge|url=http://bridgehunter.com/vt/windham/26200620005200/|website=BridgeHunter.com|accessdate=30 May 2015}}

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| number_spans = 2

| piers_in_water = 1

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| complete = 1930

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| closed = March 2009

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}}

The Charles N. Vilas Bridge is a {{convert|635|ft|m|adj=on}} two-span concrete deck arch bridge over the Connecticut River between Bellows Falls, Vermont, and North Walpole, New Hampshire. It was built in 1930 and has been closed since March 19, 2009. The state of New Hampshire has budgeted funds to repair the bridge, with work scheduled to begin in 2028.

History

Colonel Enoch Hale built a wooden covered toll bridge on this site in 1784, the first bridge over the Connecticut River.Hard, pp. 143-144 The toll was 3¢ for a man on horseback, double if he were in a chaise. If he were in a two-horse chaise, the toll was 20¢.

{{see also|List of New Hampshire historical markers (51–75)#61|label 1=New Hampshire historical marker no. 61: First Connecticut River Bridge}}

Captain Isaac DamonAllen, p.66 replaced Hale's bridge with the lattice truss Tucker Toll Bridge in 1840.{{cite web|title=Covered Toll Bridge Over Connecticut River Looking into New Hampshire|url=http://www.uvm.edu/landscape/search/details.php?ls=00137&sequence=001&set_seq=6&imageSet=1432968154-55695bda256b2&AddRel=0|website=Landscape Change Program|publisher=University of Vermont|accessdate=30 May 2015}} He built lattice truss covered bridges all over New England and New York, including 11 over the Connecticut River.

File:37-dedication-plaque-on-Vilas-Bridge.jpg

The Vilas Bridge was built in 1930, rehabilitated in 1974, and closed on March 19, 2009. It is a two-span, concrete arch bridge with open spandrels and "turned" concrete bolsters holding up its railing. A plaque is mounted on the bridge containing a section of "The Bridge Builder" by Will Allen Dromgoole.

File:31-poem-plaque-on-Vilas-Bridge.jpg

The bridge was named in honor of Charles Nathaniel Vilas of Alstead, New Hampshire, who donated funds for its construction.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89613564/residents-worry-about-deteriorating-vila/ |title=Residents worry about deteriorating Vilas Bridge |agency=AP |newspaper=Rutland Daily Herald |location=Rutland, Vermont |page=B4 |date=November 16, 2004 |accessdate=November 27, 2021 |via=newspapers.com}} Vilas was a philanthropist who had owned and managed a hotel on Fifth Avenue in New York City; he died in 1931 at the age of 78.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89613737/charles-n-vilas-passes-away-suddenly-at/ |title=Charles N. Vilas Passes Away Suddenly at his Alstead Home |newspaper=Springfield Reporter |location=Springfield, Vermont |page=11 |date=September 11, 1931 |accessdate=November 27, 2021 |via=newspapers.com}}

=Rehabilitation effort=

File:32-Vilas-Bridge-detail.jpg

The condition of this bridge has been a concern of the community for some time because it has been crumbling. New Hampshire delayed repairs due to financial restrictions on the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDoT).{{cite web|last1=Young|first1=Meg|title=Bellows Falls Citizens Push for Bridge Repairs|url=http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/95222/bellows-falls-citizens-push-for-bridge-repairs/|website=VPR|publisher=Vermont Public Radio|accessdate=30 May 2015|location=Colchester, VT|date=19 July 2012}} The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) has made overtures to the NHDoT to get the bridge open sooner, as the NHDoT was in the middle of a financial crisis. VTrans' commissioner Brian Searles made the offer to Chris Clement at the NHDoT in December 2013 to front the repair money if NHDoT would fund Vermont's part of other repairs later.{{cite web|last1=Poli|first1=Domenic|title=Vermont makes New Hampshire an offer regarding Vilas Bridge|url=http://www.reformer.com/localnews/ci_24873576/vermont-makes-new-hampshire-an-offer-regarding-vilas|website=Brattleboro Reformer|publisher=Media News Group|location=Denver, CO|accessdate=30 May 2015|date=9 January 2014}}

Opponents of repair state that there are other bridges nearby which serve this community, so the Vilas Bridge is not needed, while other bridges without any nearby alternatives are also in need of maintenance.{{cite web|last1=Snider|first1=Betsy|title=My Turn: There’s no good reason for New Hampshire to repair the Vilas Bridge|url=http://www.concordmonitor.com/home/10315847-95/my-turn-theres-no-good-reason-for-new-hampshire-to-repair-the-vilas-bridge|website=Concord Monitor|publisher=Concord Monitor|accessdate=30 May 2015|location=Concord, NH|date=21 January 2014}} New Hampshire rejected Vermont's offer.{{cite web|last1=Wertlieb|first1=Mitch|last2=Bodette|first2=Melody|title=N.H. Rejects Vt.’s Offer To Repair Vilas Bridge|url=http://digital.vpr.net/post/nh-rejects-vt-s-offer-repair-vilas-bridge|website=VPR|publisher=Vermont Public Radio|accessdate=30 May 2015|location=Colchester, VT|date=10 January 2014}}

New Hampshire bill HB 1205 was created in 2014 to split the estimated $5M repair cost evenly with Vermont, instead of the usual 7 percent from Vermont and 93 percent from New Hampshire by ownership percentage.{{cite web|last1=Rep. Cloutier|title=HB 1205: AN ACT relative to reconstruction or rehabilitation of the Vilas Bridge between Walpole, New Hampshire and Bellows Falls, Vermont|url=http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2014/HB1205.html|publisher=The New Hampshire General Court|accessdate=30 May 2015|date=25 November 2013}}{{cite web|last1=Teague|first1=Allison|title=N.H. House tries again to make Vilas Bridge a priority|url=http://www.commonsnews.org/site/site05/story.php?articleno=10164&page=1#.VWlH-NNVhBc|website=The Commons Online|accessdate=30 May 2015|location=Windham County, VT|date=25 June 2014}} Further action will mean putting the Vilas Bridge back on New Hampshire's 10-year plan, which requires New Hampshire legislative action.

In 2021, Rockingham, Vermont, researched whether federal funds were available to help pay for repairs. New Hampshire had about $10 million budgeted for repairs as part of their 10-year plan.{{Cite web|date=2021-03-21|title=Officials Hope Federal Funds Will Pay For Repairs To Vermont-New Hampshire Bridge|url=https://boston.cbslocal.com/2021/03/21/vermont-new-hampshire-vilas-bridge-repairs/|access-date=2021-03-21|language=en-US}} In 2022, New Hampshire budgeted $17.7 million in its 10-year plan to repair the bridge, with work scheduled to begin in 2028.{{cite news |url=https://www.reformer.com/business/finally-vilas-bridge-set-to-be-rebuilt-starting-in-2028/article_9e7373cc-3845-11ed-a611-af6404c9e21e.html |title=Finally! Vilas Bridge set to be rebuilt, starting in 2028 |first=Susan |last=Smallheer |website=Brattleboro Reformer |date=September 19, 2022 |accessdate=December 10, 2023}}

References

Bibliography

{{cite book|last1=Allen|first1=Richard Sanders|title=Covered Bridges of the Northeast|date=2004|publisher=Dover Publications, Inc.|location=Mineola, New York|isbn=0-486-43662-4|edition=3rd}}
{{cite book|last1=Hard|first1=Walter|title=The Connecticut|date=1998|publisher=Massachusetts Audubon Society|location=Lincoln, MA|isbn=0-932691-27-7}}

{{Crossings navbox

|structure = Crossings

|place = Connecticut River

|bridge = Vilas Bridge

|bridge signs =

|upstream = Stone Arch Bridge

|upstream signs =

|downstream = Route 123 bridge

|downstream signs = {{jct|state=VT|VT|123}}
{{jct|state=NH|NH|123}}

}}

Category:Bridges over the Connecticut River

Category:Buildings and structures in Bellows Falls, Vermont