Carries Automobile Locale Montgomery, Vermont ID number VT-06-04 Opened 1883 Area 4,047 m² Bridge type Lattice truss bridge | Crosses Trout River Maintained by Town of Montgomery Design Covered, Town lattice Total length 21 m Location Montgomery Body of water Trout River | |
Address Montgomery Center, VT 05471, USA Similar Hutchins Covered Bridge, Fuller Covered Bridge, Longley Covered Bridge, Hopkins Covered Bridge, West Hill Covered Bridge | ||
The Comstock Covered Bridge is a wooden covered bridge that crosses the Trout River in Montgomery, Vermont on Comstock Bridge Road. Built in 1883, it is one of several area bridges built by Sheldon & Savannah Jewett. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Description and history
The Comstock Covered Bridge stands just west of the Montgomery Village, carrying Comstock Bridge Road over the Trout River south of Vermont Route 118. It is a Town lattice design, 69 feet (21 m) long, resting on abutments of dry laid stone and concrete. Its roadway is 16 feet (4.9 m) wide (one lane), and has a total overall width of 19.5 feet (5.9 m). The exterior is clad in vertical board siding, and it is covered by a metal roof. The portal ends are also finished in vertical board siding, which extends a short way inside, and whose exterior parts are normally painted white.
The bridge was built in 1883 by Sheldon & Savannah Jewett, brothers who lived in Montgomery. The Jewett brothers are credited with building six surviving bridges in Montgomery as well as some in surrounding communities, representing one of the best-documented concentrations of bridges by a single builder in the state. The original timber for the bridge was prepared by the Jewetts at their mill in Montgomery's West Hill area.
A complete renovation of the bridge was carried out by Blow & Cote, of Morrisville, Vermont, in 2003. A comprehensive series of articles chronicling the work can be found at the Vermont Covered Bridges web site.