Goffstown Covered Railroad Bridge

Last updated
Goffstown Covered Railroad Bridge
GoffstownNH Bridges.jpg
The abutments to the former railroad bridge are visible in the foreground; the NH 114 bridge is behind them.
USA New Hampshire location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationNext to NH 114 (Main St.) over Piscataquog River, Goffstown, New Hampshire
Coordinates 43°01′05″N71°35′57″W / 43.018172°N 71.599145°W / 43.018172; -71.599145 Coordinates: 43°01′05″N71°35′57″W / 43.018172°N 71.599145°W / 43.018172; -71.599145
Area0.5 acres (0.20 ha)
Built1901 (1901)
Built byBoston & Maine Railroad
Architectural styleTown-Pratt truss
NRHP reference No. 75000125 [1]
Added to NRHPJune 18, 1975

The Goffstown Covered Railroad Bridge was a rare railroad covered bridge in Goffstown, New Hampshire. It was built in 1901 by the Boston and Maine Railroad, on the site of an earlier bridge built in 1850 by the New Hampshire Central Railroad, and carried its tracks across the Piscataquog River in the center of Goffstown. [2] The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. [1] It was destroyed by arson in 1976, [3] as would later be the case with the Hillsborough Railroad Bridge in 1985.

Contents

Description and history

The Goffstown Covered Railroad Bridge was located in the village center of Goffstown, just east of the bridge carrying New Hampshire Route 114 (Main Street) across the Piscataquog River. The bridge was oriented at an angle to the banks of the river, on granite slab abutments that are still visible, capped in concrete. The bridge was a single span truss structure with a clear span of 117 feet (36 m) and a total structure length of 129 feet (39 m). Its trusses were a combination of Town lattice trusses and Pratt trusses, with an integrated laminated arch. Portions of the trusses have iron reinforcements in the form of turnbuckles. The bridge had an inside horizontal clearance of 15 feet (4.6 m) and a vertical clearance of 21 feet (6.4 m). The railroad deck was supported by a web of timbers anchored into the trusses. [2]

The first bridge on the site was built about 1850 by the New Hampshire Central Railroad. In 1895 the line came under control of the Boston and Maine Railroad, which built this bridge as a replacement in 1901. The line, which originally ran to Henniker, was abandoned to Goffstown (ending short of this bridge) in the 1930s, and was still in operation to that point when the bridge was listed on the National Register in 1975. [2]

The bridge was destroyed by a deliberately set fire on August 16, 1976. [3] Smoke from the fire could be seen as far as Manchester, 8 miles (13 km) away. Heat from the burning bridge was so intense that paint blistered on the fire engines parked nearby. At the time, the Boston & Maine Railroad was still serving two customers on the western side of the river, Kendall-Hadley Lumber and Merrimack Farmers Exchange. Despite this, the railroad decided not to replace the bridge. Freight service still ran on the line east of the river until September 20, 1980, with total abandonment following in February 1981. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goffstown, New Hampshire</span> Town in New Hampshire, United States

Goffstown is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 18,577 at the 2020 census. The compact center of town, where 3,366 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Goffstown census-designated place and is located at the junctions of New Hampshire routes 114 and 13. Goffstown also includes the villages of Grasmere and Pinardville. The town is home to Saint Anselm College and was the location of the New Hampshire State Prison for Women, prior to the prison's relocation to Concord in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Boston, New Hampshire</span> Town in New Hampshire, United States

New Boston is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,108 at the 2020 census, up from 5,321 at the 2010 census. New Boston is home to the annual Hillsborough County Agricultural Fair and the Molly Stark Cannon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weare, New Hampshire</span> Town in New Hampshire, United States

Weare is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 9,092 at the 2020 census. It is close to two important New Hampshire cities, Manchester and Concord.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscataquog River</span> River in New Hampshire, United States

The Piscataquog River is a 34.7-mile-long (55.8 km) river located in southern New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Merrimack River, which flows to the Gulf of Maine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Columbia Bridge (Connecticut River)</span> Bridge in New Hampshire and Lemington, Vermont

The Columbia Bridge is a covered bridge, carrying Columbia Bridge Road over the Connecticut River between Columbia, New Hampshire and Lemington, Vermont. Built in 1911–12, it is one of only two New Hampshire bridges built with Howe trusses, and is one of the last covered bridges built in the historic era of covered bridge construction in both states. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goffstown Main Street Historic District</span> Historic district in New Hampshire, United States

The Goffstown Main Street Historic District is a historic district encompassing the historic 19th-century center of Goffstown, New Hampshire. Most of the district's 23 buildings lie on Main Street, in a 0.5-mile (0.80 km) running north from the Piscataquog River to North Mast Street. The district also includes properties on Depot Street and Church Street, west of Main Street. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coombs Covered Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Coombs Covered Bridge is a wooden covered bridge which carries Coombs Bridge Road over the Ashuelot River in northern Winchester, New Hampshire. It was built in 1837, and is one of the state's small number of surviving 19th-century covered bridges. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watson Settlement Bridge</span> United States historic place

Watson Settlement Bridge was an historic covered bridge in eastern Littleton, Maine, United States. Built in 1911, it was one of the youngest of Maine's few surviving covered bridges. It formerly carried Framingham Road over the Meduxnekeag River, but was closed to traffic, the road passing over a modern bridge to its south. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. It was destroyed by fire on July 19, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Contoocook Railroad Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Contoocook Railroad Bridge is a covered bridge on the former Contoocook Valley Railroad line spanning the Contoocook River in the center of the village of Contoocook, New Hampshire, United States. It is referred to in the National Register of Historic Places as the Hopkinton Railroad Covered Bridge, for the town of Hopkinton, New Hampshire, in which the village of Contoocook is located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hancock–Greenfield Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Hancock–Greenfield Bridge is a historic covered bridge carrying Forest Road over the Contoocook River at the town line between Hancock and Greenfield, New Hampshire. The New Hampshire Department of Transportation covered bridge database refers to it as County Bridge. Built in 1937, it is the first wooden covered bridge in the northeastern United States to use modern engineering techniques. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nashua Manufacturing Company Historic District</span> Historic district in New Hampshire, United States

The Nashua Manufacturing Company Historic District in Nashua, New Hampshire, is a historic district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1987. It encompasses an area just west of downtown Nashua, roughly located along the southern bank of the Nashua River, bordered on the west side by Mine Falls Park, on the south side by the Nashua River canal, up to Ledge Street, and from the east side by Factory, Pine and Water streets, up to the Main Street bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Contoocook Railroad Depot</span> United States historic place

The Contoocook Railroad Depot is located in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, United States, in the village of Contoocook. The depot was completed in 1849 as one of the first substantial railroad passenger stations west of Concord on the Concord and Claremont Railroad. The building is one of the best preserved of a small number of gable-roofed railroad stations surviving from the first decade of rail development in New Hampshire. The station exemplifies the pioneering period of rail development in the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulphite Railroad Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Sulphite Railroad Bridge, also known locally as the Upside-Down Covered Bridge is a historic railroad bridge in Franklin, New Hampshire. The bridge was built circa 1896-7 to carry the tracks of the Boston and Maine Railroad across the Winnipesaukee River between Franklin and Tilton. The bridge is believed to be the only surviving "upside down" covered railroad bridge in the United States, in which the rail bed is laid on top of the bridge roof, whose purpose is to shelter the trusses below. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. The bridge, unused since 1973, is not in good condition, having been subjected to graffiti, vandalism, and arson, as well as the elements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corbin Covered Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Corbin Covered Bridge is a wooden covered bridge over the North Branch of the Sugar River on Corbin Road, approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) west of NH 10 in Newport in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, but was removed following its destruction by fire in the early hours of May 25, 1993. It has since been reconstructed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hillsborough Railroad Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Hillsborough Railroad Bridge was a historic covered railroad bridge spanning the Contoocook River in Hillsborough, New Hampshire. Built in 1903 by the Boston and Maine Railroad, it was destroyed by arson in 1985. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. At the time of its nomination it was one of six covered railroad bridges in the state; it and at least one other were destroyed by the actions of arsonists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parker's Store</span> United States historic place

Parker's Store is a historic retail building at 18 Parker Station Road in Goffstown, New Hampshire. The two-story wood-frame structure was built before 1804, and is one of the state's few surviving early retail structures. It has been home to the Goffstown Historical Society since 1973, when it was donated by the Parker family. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wright's Bridge</span> United States historic place

Wright's Bridge is a historic covered bridge in Newport, New Hampshire. Originally built in 1906 to carry the Boston and Maine Railroad across the Sugar River, it now carries the multi-use Sugar River Trail. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pier Bridge</span> United States historic place

The Pier Bridge is a historic covered bridge in Newport, New Hampshire. Originally built in 1907 to carry the Boston and Maine Railroad across the Sugar River, it now carries the multi-use Sugar River Trail, which was built on the abandoned right-of-way. It is one of a modest number of historic covered bridges in New Hampshire, and is named for the fact that it has a central pier. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandown Depot</span> United States historic place

The Sandown Depot is a former railroad station of the Boston and Maine Railroad in Sandown, New Hampshire. Built in 1873–74, it is the best-preserved of stations built by the Nashua and Rochester Railroad to survive, remaining relatively unaltered since its construction, and still at its original location. It is now a local history museum, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986, and the New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Milton Bridge</span> United States historic place

The West Milton Bridge is a steel girder bridge carrying Bear Trap Road across the Lamoille River in Milton, Vermont, United States. It was built as a replacement for a 1902 Pennsylvania truss bridge, which was relocated to the site of the Swanton Covered Railroad Bridge, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 "NRHP nomination for Goffstown Covered Railroad Bridge". National Park Service. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
  3. 1 2 "Fire Of Suspicious Origin Destroys Covered Bridge". Nashua Telegraph . Nashua, New Hampshire. UPI. August 17, 1976. p. 28. Retrieved December 9, 2020 via newspapers.com.
  4. "Abandonment Notices". bmrrhs.org. Boston & Maine Railroad Historical Society.