Pennsylvania boasts 208 covered bridges still standing in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 7 within Greene County & 23 in Washington County (Pinebank Covered Bridge) was moved from Greene County to the Meadowcroft Village in Washington County, PA.
OVERVIEW:
Covered bridges symbolize small-town America. Something from the nineteenth century, a little archaic and strange to nineteen-nineties eyes, picturesque and sentimental, "kissing bridges" recall a time when life was simpler and closer to the land -- if only in our dreams.
Covered bridges complement autumn leaves and autumn emotions. Photogenic and often remote from the Interstate Highways and cities of the twentieth century, covered bridges lure the explorer to find the little streams and dirt roads that the twentieth century has almost passed by.
For a Covered Bridge Driving Tour Booklet (covers Greene & Washington Counties), call 1-866-927-4969 — OR — to download a pdf version (3.96 MB size)
COVERED BRIDGE FESTIVAL: DON'T MISS OUR ANNUAL COVERED BRIDGE FESTIVAL (held the third weekend in September)
Washington and Greene Counties' Tourism Promotion agencies invite you to take part in a celebration of their rich heritage and beautiful countryside in Southwestern PA during the annual covered bridge festival.
Held annually on the third weekend in September, the Covered Bridge Festival is widely regarded as a signature event in the area — and a great way to enjoy the beginning of the Autumn season.
Each of the ten festival locations offers a charming atmosphere and an array of activities, including hand-made arts & crafts, home-style foods, historical re-enactments, crafting demonstrations and delightful entertainment. Admission and parking are FREE and held rain or shine. Festival hours are 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (activities subject to change). Following are the covered bridge locations within Greene and Washington Counties:
GREENE COUNTY:
Carmichaels Covered Bridge, Carmichaels, Greene County — 724-966-9770
White Covered Bridge, Garards Fort, Greene County — 724-966-2357
WASHINGTON COUNTY:
Ebenezer Covered Bridge, Mingo Creek County Park in Washington County — 724-228-5520 or 1-866-927-4969
Henry Covered Bridge, Mingo Creek County Park in Washington County — 724-225-2061
Hughes Covered Bridge, Amwell Township in Washington County — 724-267-4326
Wyit Sprowls Covered Bridge, East Finley Twp Park in Washington County — 724-663-4483
Brownlee Covered Bridge, McGuffey Park in Washington County — 724-663-4380
Krepps Covered Bridge, Mt Pleasant Twp in Washington County — 724-947-4773
McClurg Covered Bridge, Hanover Twp Park in Washington County — 724-729-3657
Pine Bank Covered Bridge, Meadowcroft Rockshelter & Museum of Rural Life in Washington County — 724-587-3412
Click here for the 2011 Covered Bridge Festival brochure with map and details. and here for 2011 White Covered Bridge Festival Schedule of Events.
For more information on our Covered Bridge Festival, contact the Greene County Tourist Promotion Agency at 724-627-8687 or Email to tourism or their GoGreene website at: www.greenecountytourism.org.
CARMICHAELS COVERED BRIDGE: The Carmichaels in one of the seven covered bridges that remains standing within the boundaries of Greene County. One of these abutments has been reinforces with concrete. The queenpost truss is reinforced with additional diagonal timbers, but there is no evidence of additional steel reinforcement. The Carmichaels Bridge is still open to traffic and is part of the annual Covered Bridge Festival.
Truss Type: Queenpost, reinforced with additional diagonal timbers, with no evidence of additional steel reinforcement.
Year restored/refurbished: 1988 (by the County)
Lat/Long Coordinance: N39 54.06 | W79 58.62
Bridge Location & Waterway: Spans Muddy Creek on Old Town Road in Carmichaels Borough, PA.
Description: covered with white vertical board and batten siding on both sides and portals, has a sheet metal roof, covered with raised seam tin and a deck of lenghtwise planking in the tire track are laid over crosswise planking. It rests on cut stone-and-mortar abutments that are extended to road-level wingwalls. Easy drive.
Year built: 1940 (bridge was constructed due to a shortage of steel during the war years).
Builder: Unknown
Bridge Dimensions: 17'8" x 15'
Truss Type: Kingpost
Lat/Long Coordinance: N39 56.59 | W80 07.55
Bridge Location & Waterway: Located on a heavily traveled township road in an open rural area. Spans Ruff Creek in Morgan Township.
Directions to bridge: NW of Jefferson in Morgan Township, PA188 west 2.5 miles from junction with Pine Street in Jefferson, NW on PA221 1.8 miles, south on Kennel Road 50' to the bridge.
Description: shortest covered bridge in Greene County; weight Limit 4 tons; bridge has white siding horizontal board; no windows; with sheet metal roof. One concrete abutment, one stone & mortar reinforced with concrete abutment; concrete wingwalls; supported by five steel beams. Easy drive.
KING COVERED BRIDGE: With a few boards missing here and there on the sides, this rustic bridge is covered with unpainted random-width vertical board siding. The roof is covered with steel metal and the deck with crosswise planking. The structure of the bridge rests on cut stone abutments, which are extended to form short wingwalls slightly higher than the road level. It has the typical narrow lengthwise openings under the eves. The King Bridge has no evidence of any steel reinforcement. It is open to vehicular traffic with the average three-ton weight limit.
On June 16, 2005, the Greene County Board of Commissioners held a Ribbon Cutting Dedication Ceremony at the Woods Covered Bridge located in Center Township, and the King Covered Bridge, located in Wayne Township. The dedication ceremony for both bridges took place at the Woods Covered Bridge, on Oak Forest Road and Woods Road, in Center Township. Both the bridges were recently restored while preserving as much as possible of the original structures.
Bridge Location & Directions: North of Brave in Wayne Township, SR3013 North 2.5 miles from junction with SR3009 in Brave, west on King Sister Hill Road 50' to the bridge. Difficult drive.
NETTIE WOODS COVERED BRIDGE: Serving as the oldest covered bridge that remains standing in Greene County, this bridge was names for Edward (Ned or Neddie) W. Wood, a Civil War veteran who owned the land on which the bridge was built in 1882; and is on the National Register of Historic Places for Greene County, PA. Standing in the open farmland countryside of Greene County, the Neddie Woods Bridge is covered on both sides and portals with unpainted vertical board siding. The roof is made of corrugated sheet metal, and the deck is covered with crosswise planking. The only side openings are fairly wide lengthwise ones immediately under the eaves. The structure is reinforced with five steel I beams and rest on cut stone abutments that appear to have been laid dry. It also is open to vehicular traffic with a posted load limit of four tons.
On June 16, 2005, the Greene County Board of Commissioners held a Ribbon Cutting Dedication Ceremony at the Woods Covered Bridge located in Center Township, and the King Covered Bridge, located in Wayne Township. The dedication ceremony for both bridges took place at the Woods Covered Bridge, on Oak Forest Road and Woods Road, in Center Township. Both the bridges were recently restored while preserving as much as possible of the original structures.
Bridge Location & Directions: SW of Waynesburg, Center Township. PA21 west 0.9 miles from junction with US19 in Waynesburg, continue west on PA18/21 2.1 miles, south on SR3013 1.8 miles, just west on Woods Rd. to the bridge. Moderate drive.
SCOTT COVERED BRIDGE: Built in 1885, and covered with unpainted vertical board on both the sides and portals of the bridge, the Scott Bridge had a roof of sheet metal and a deck of crosswise planking. One side window is cut into the center of the queenpost truss structure in addition to the typical lengthwise openings under the eaves of the bridge. The Scott Bridge has been reinforced with Steel I beams and rest on cut stone abutments. This covered bridge also remains open to vehicular traffic.
Year built: 1885 / in the process of being restored 2008
Builder: William Lang
Bridge Dimensions: 42' x 13'
Truss Type: Queenpost
Lat/Long Coordinance: 39.8878N | -80.3255W
Waterway: spans south fork of Ten-Mile Creek in Center Township
Bridge Location & Directions: WNW of Rogersville, Center Township. PA21 NW 2.9 miles from junction with PA18 just west of Rogersville, west on Covered Bridge Rd. 200' to the bridge. Difficult drive.
SHRIVER COVERED BRIDGE: The Shriver is another of the queenpost structures located in the open countryside of Greene County. It is covered with random-width unpainted vertical board siding on both sides and portals, has a sheet metal roof and a deck of crosswise planking. Fairly wide length-wise openings immediately under the eaves are the only side opening on the bridge. The Shriver is reinforced with steel I beams and rests on cut stone abutments that appear to have been laid dry and has wingwalls of similar material that extends a little above the road level.
Bridge Location & Directions: South of Rogersville, Center Township. PA18 SW 0.5 miles from junction with PA21 just west of Rogersville, south on Hargus Creek Rd. (SR3011) 1.1 miles, SE on Turkey Hollow Rd. 300' to the bridge. Difficult drive.
WHITE COVERED BRIDGE: The White Bridge is the longest of the queenpost structures located within Greene County. There is, however, a discrepancy concerning the date of this bridges construction. With the exception of the 1990 state survey, which determined that the bridge was built in 1900, all other sources suggest that the White Bridge was constructed around 1919.
Charles Morris, born in 1911, grew up near this area. He remembers the White Bridge being built when he was a young boy and that prior to the building of the bridge there was a foot log across the creek just west of where the bridge now stands. If one wanted to cross the creek with a wagon or buggy, you had to ford the creek even though at times the water was too deep to permit crossing at all.
In addition to being the longest covered bridge in Greene County; White Bridge is also an exceptionally high queenpost structure. It has a clearance of 17 feet, 6 inches. With no evidence of steel reinforcement, the bridge boasts an exceptionally high load limit of ten-ton. It is covered with white vertical tongue-and-groove board siding on both the sides and the portals, a steel metal roof and a decking of lengthwise vertical planking in the tire track area laid over diagonal crosswise planking.
The structure rests on cut stone-and-mortar wingwalls. There are typical narrow lengthwise openings under the eaves.
Bridge Location & Directions: WSW of Garards Fort, Greene Township. Fordyce Rd. (Garards Fort Rd., SR2017) west 2.0 miles from junction with Carmichaels Rd. in Garards Fort, south on Roberts Run Rd. 0.15 miles to the bridge. Approximately 9 miles from Carmichaels, PA. Moderate drive.
WREN's NEST COVERED BRIDGE: Commissioned by Richard & Eloise Davison and built by Fred McCracken in 1993, blacksmith work done by Cameron Tool. It is located north of Aleppo on SR 3001 on the left side of the road near a log cabin on the hill. Fred McCracken of Wind Ridge, Aleppo Township, built an old-fashioned covered bridge across South Wheeling Creek, connecting a private drive to Aleppo Road between Routes 18 & 21 near Ryerson Station. With many of the area's traditional covered bridges deteriorating from age, restoration is one way to preserve the feature of Pennsylvania's architectural heritage; another is to build a brand new covered bridge. Thus making Greene County's tally of covered bridges still standing up to 10.
Mr. McCracken was commissioned in 1988 by Richard and Eloise Davison to construct the covered bridge. Preparations for construction of the bridge began in early 1990, and McCracken drafted his own plans for the new covered bridge. Construction started in October 1990 but was halted immediately by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources. Only after the Davisons obtained a permanent bridge permit — two years later — could work resume. The bridge was built exactly like they were in the 1880s in Greene and Washington Counties.
Lat/Long Coordinance: The GPS location is Lat. 39.8410N & Long. -80.4540W
Truss Type: King Truss; with two reinforced concrete abutments stand 9 feet high, 16 feet wide and 29 feet apart. All framing is made of Oak beams; the siding and rafters are constructed from poplar trees, which was cut and sawed locally. The main sills of the trusses are square-foot beams with 10-square-inch Red Oak stress beams. Finished in February 1993, the bridge has a length of 30-feet and an inside height and width of 12 square feet.
Waterway: South Fork Wheeling Creek in Aleppo Township
Bridge Location: north of Aleppo, Aleppo Road (SR 3001), Aleppo Township, n. 1.4 miles from junction with SR3003 in Aleppo to the bridge on west side of the road; near Ryerson Station, left side of the road near a log cabin on the hill) in Greene County, PA.
BARNEY's RUN or BRANT COVERED BRIDGE: Bridge Number: 38-30-19, built in 1900 in Richhill Township. The 77-foot bridge, which spanned Barney's Run, a branch of Wheeling Creek, no longer stands. Click here for a photo of bridge (Photo courtesy of Tom Headlee)
GRIMES COVERED BRIDGE: Grimes covered Bridge on Green Valley Road spans Ruff Creek in Washington Township off Pennsylvania Route 221. Period of Significance: 1875-1899.
The bridge was burned down by vandals and not rebuilt.
Click here for photo of bridge (Courtesy of Douglas Dunkerton)
HAWKINS COVERED BRIDGE: Bridge Number: 38-30-32 and 38-63-32. Bridge burnt in June 28, 1974.
MORRISVILLE COVERED BRIDGE: Bridge Number: xxx, in Franklin Township was the only two-way covered bridge ever erected in Greene County. Click here for a photo of bridge (Photo courtesy of Tom Headlee).
PINEBANK COVERED BRIDGE: Built in 1870 in Greene County over Toms Run in Gilmore Township, Pennsylvania; with a vertical-plant sided, gable roof made of asphalt shingles. In 1962, Albert Miller moved the bridge to Washington County to become apart of the Meadowcroft Village (Washington County near Avella, PA). The Meadowcroft Village is a 19th century town recreated as a tourist attraction with many buildings original to the period. The Pine Bank Covered Bridge serves as the portal from which visitors embark on their adventure into Pennsylvania history.
Meadowcroft Village, NW of Avella, Jefferson Township in Washington County, is a reconstructed village featuring a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, general store, log houses and now the Pine Bank Covered Bridge. The covered bridge interior walls remain unpainted to reveal several old advertisements. Resting on stone abutments that have been laid dry, it has large, cut-stone slabs at each end where typically the wingwalls would be. This bridge is also a participant in the annual Covered Bridge Festival held in both Greene and Washington Counties.
Bridge Number: 38-63-35 (Formerly 38-30-06 in Greene County)
Bridge Dimensions: 39'
Builder:
Year: 1870
Waterway: over a ravine with Meadowcroft Park
Truss Type:
Lat/Long Coordinance: N40 17.25 W80 29.53 (at its relocation site in Jefferson Township, Washington County)
Bridge Location & Directions: Originally built in Greene County in 1871 Built in 1871, orginally in Green County, the bridge ia moved to the Meadowcroft Museum of Rural Life in 1962. The Museum (located in Avella, Pennsylvania of Washington County) recreates 19th century American life. The bridge is simular in color but differs in style of its roof and portals design. The interior walls remain unpainted, revealing old advertisements; the brige is open to foot traffic only. This bridge is also one of the loctions for the annual Covered Bridge Festival held the third weekend in September.
Directions to the Meadowncroft Mesuem: N. 0.15 miles from jct with PA50 in Avella, NW on Browntown Rd. (SR4018) 0.2 miles, N. on Meadowcroft Rd. (SR4018) 1.3 miles, N. (curves W.) on Miller Rd. 1.0 miles to the Park entrance on N. side of the road. Bridge is 0.2 miles into the park.
Click here for a photo of bridge where it now sits at Meadowcroft Village.
RED (NEILS) COVERED BRIDGE: Bridge Number: 38-30-27, over Whiteley Creek was built in 1900, and historians familiar with the bridge claim it was call the Red Bridge because it was originally painted a barn red. It was destroyed by fire in the 1980s. Click here for a photo of bridge (Photo courtesy of Tom Headlee).
WILLOW TREE COVERED BRIDGE: Bridge Number: 38-30-11, a two-span bridge built in 1875; spanning the Whiteley Creek in Greene Township, it burned in 1966. Click here for a photo of bridge (Photo courtesy of Tom Headlee).
GREENE COUNTY COVERED BRIDGES LISTED ON THE NATIONAL HISTORIC REGISTRY:
Carmichaels Covered Bridge, Carmichaels, PA (Thomas Kent, Jr. Farm)
For general information, please contact the Information Services at 724-852-5399 / Toll Free: 1-888-852-5399. County Office Building, 93 E. High Street, Waynesburg, PA 15370
Carmichaels CB 
Washington and Greene Counties' Tourism Promotion agencies invite you to take part in a celebration of their rich heritage and beautiful countryside in Southwestern PA during the annual covered bridge festival.
