Bissell Covered Bridge

Just a few hundred feet north on route 8A in the center of Charlemont is the newlyrebuilt 92 foot BissellCovered Bridge, the third bridge on this site. The original bridge that crossed  Mill Brook was built about 1840 and was replaced in 1951. The current bridge, which reopened in May of 2009 after two years of construction, replaces the old bridge which had been closed to vehicular traffic in 1995. The site of the bridge was added to the National Register of Historical Places in 2004.

It took several years of discussion with the residents of Charlemont and state engineers before it was agreed to do a restoration of the bridge rather than demolish it and erect a modern concrete and steel bridge. As a compromise the new bridge has some special added support and guardrails, but to the casual observer the new wooden covered bridge maintains the character of the two preceding bridges at this location.

A special dedication of the new bridge, reminiscent of the one held in 1951, is planed for sometime in the fall of 2009.