Keefers Mill Covered Bridge - Washingtonville, Pennsylvania

Spanning 75 feet across the Chillisquaque Creek on Keefer Mill Road near Washingtonville in Montour County, Pennsylvania is the Keefers Mill Covered Bridge. Also known as the Keefer Covered Bridge No. 7 in Montour County's covered bridge inventory, it is the only remaining bridge that is located entirely within Montour County, although some covered bridges cross the border of the county. The bridge was built in 1853 by George Butler at a cost of $498.00. Butler designed and built the covered bridge using a Burr arch truss design.

The site of the Keefers Mill Covered Bridge was near Geringer's Mill, but not much is known of that mill. However, records do list the builder of the mill as George W. Keefer, who built a number of mills and covered bridges throughout north central Pennsylvania and it is quite possible that the covered bridge was named for Keefer. The covered bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 and was rehabilitated in 1983 after sitting idle since 1976. Funds from liquid fuel taxes were used to rehabilitate the covered bridge, and $38,500 was used from that tax fund for its reconstruction.

As you may notice, the covered bridge has a square opening, which is unusual for covered bridges found in Pennsylvania. The panels at the bridge's portals that give the Keefers Mill Covered Bridge that unique look create a square opening that are called storefront panels. If you are visiting the bridge, you will find that it is set on a quiet road. There are a couple of pulloffs near the bridge that are small enough for a single car to fit. There are a few trees located along the Chillisquaque Creek that lend to the covered bridge's surroundings, but seem to get in the way for bridge photography.

How to Get There:

Sources and Links:
Valley Girl Views - Keefers Mill Covered Bridge
Bridgehunter.com - Keefer Covered Bridge 38-47-03
UncoveringPA - Visiting the Covered Bridges of Montour County, PA

Update Log:
February 18, 2022 - Crossposted to Quintessential Pennsylvania - https://quintessentialpa.blogspot.com/2022/02/keefers-mill-covered-bridge.html

Comments

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...

Massena Center Suspension Bridge

The Massena Center Bridge, also known as the Holton D. Robinson Bridge, has had quite the tumultuous history. Situated on the Grasse River just east of Massena, New York in the hamlet of Massena Center, the Massena Center Bridge is a reminder of the efforts the community has made in order to connect over the river. The first and only other known bridge to be built at Massena Center was built in 1832, but that bridge was never long for this world. During the spring of 1833, the Grasse River dammed itself due to an ice dam, flooded and lifted the bridge off its foundation, destroying the bridge in the process. The floods were frequent in the river during the spring, often backing up the river from Hogansburg and past Massena Center, but not to nearby Massena. After the first bridge disappeared, local residents had to resort to traveling seven miles west to Massena to cross the next closest bridge, and that was no easy task for a horse and buggy. However, it was many decades befo...

The Dead Man's Curve of Interstate 90 and Innerbelt Freeway in Cleveland

"Dead Man's Curve" refers to the transition ramp Interstate 90 takes between Cleveland Memorial Shoreway onto the Innerbelt Freeway in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Said curve includes a sharp transition between the two freeways which is known for a high rate of accidents. Currently the curve (not officially named) has a 35 MPH advisory speed and numerous safety features intended to mitigate crashes. When the Interstate System was first conceived during 1956, Interstate 90 was intended to use the entirety Cleveland Memorial Shoreway and connect to the Northwest Freeway through Lakewood. The Innerbelt Freeway was initially planned as the northernmost segment of Interstate 71. The extension of Cleveland Memorial Shoreway west of Edgewater Park was never constructed which led to Interstate 90 being routed through the Innerbelt Freeway. Part 1; the history of Cleveland's Innerbelt Freeway and Deadman's Curve The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 was signe...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog