Keller's Mill Covered Bridge

Keller's Mill Covered Bridge
Guy Bard's, Rettew's
On Rettew Mill Road in July 2006, before the bridge was disassembled and moved
Official name: Cocalico No. 5 Bridge
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County Lancaster
Township Ephrata
Road Middle Creek Road (TR 660)
Crosses Cocalico Creek
Coordinates 40°9′51″N 76°13′57″W / 40.16417°N 76.23250°W / 40.16417; -76.23250Coordinates: 40°9′51″N 76°13′57″W / 40.16417°N 76.23250°W / 40.16417; -76.23250
Length 74 ft (23 m)
 - Mainspan 64 ft (20 m)
Width 15 ft (5 m)
Builder Elias McMellen
Design Burr Arch truss bridge
Material Wood
Built 1873
 - Rebuilt 1891
 - Added to NRHP December 10, 1980
 - Disassembled 2006
 - Reopened December 2010
Governing body Lancaster County
WGCB # 38-36-13
NRHP # 80003518 [1]
MPS Covered Bridges of Lancaster County TR
Location of the Keller's Mill Covered Bridge in Pennsylvania
Wikimedia Commons: Keller's Mill Covered Bridge

The Keller's Mill Covered Bridge is a covered bridge that spans Cocalico Creek in Ephrata Township, Lancaster County in the US state of Pennsylvania. A county-owned and maintained bridge, its official designation is the Cocalico No. 5 Bridge.[2] It is also sometimes known as Guy Bard Covered Bridge (after a local jurist) and Rettew's Covered Bridge (after the person that Rettew's Road is named).[3]

Due to heavy road traffic on the aging, one-lane bridge, construction on a new steel and concrete bridge to bypass the covered bridge occurred in the summer of 2006. According to Ephrata Township supervisor Clark Stauffer, the bridge has been disassembled and will be reassembled a few miles downstream to replace an existing one lane Mill Creek Road bridge.[4] It was located at 40°10′11.4″N 76°12′16.8″W / 40.169833°N 76.204667°W / 40.169833; -76.204667 (40.16983, −76.20467) before being disassembled.[5]

History

Keller's Mill Covered Bridge was originally built by Elias McMellen in 1873 at a cost of US$2,075. After being swept away in flooding, the bridge was rebuilt in 1891, again by McMellen.[6] It stayed there until it was disassembled and moved in 2006. The bridge was reopened on Middle Creek Road in December 2010.[7]

Design

Keller's Mill Covered Bridge has a single span, wooden, double Burr arch trusses design with the addition of steel hanger rods. The deck is made from oak planks.[2] The bridge is the only all white bridge in the county,[6] the only bridge to have survived the transition from whitewashing to the red color commonly used in barns throughout the county. The bridge is not painted on the inside.

Rebuilt in 2010

See also

References

  1. ↑ "NPS Focus". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Keller's Mill Covered Bridge". Lancaster County, PA Government Portal. County of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. October 20, 2001. Retrieved 2006-07-07.
  3. 1 2 3 "Guy Bard's (Keller's) Covered Bridge" (PDF). Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  4. ↑ Robinson, Ryan (September 30, 2006). "Rebirth of a covered bridge?". LancasterOnline.com : News. Lancaster Newspapers. Retrieved 2006-10-01.
  5. ↑ Travis, Dale. "38-36-13". Round Barns & Covered Bridges. Retrieved 2006-08-08.
  6. 1 2 "Keller's Mill Covered Bridge". Lancaster County Pennsylvania Dutch Country Official Visitors Center. Pennsylvania Dutch Convention & Visitors Bureau. 2006. Retrieved 2006-07-07.
  7. ↑ "Keller's Mill Covered Bridge". Intelligencer Journal / Lancaster New Era. December 12, 2010. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  8. 1 2 Bickel, Hank (June 23, 2005). "Keller Bridge". Covered Bridges of the Northeast USA. Retrieved 2006-08-04.
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