The Ledyard Bridge crosses the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

to connect

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a New England town, town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university ...

Norwich, Vermont Norwich is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,612 at the 2020 census. Home to some of the state of Vermont's wealthiest residents, the municipality is a commuter town for nearby Hanover, New Hampshire acros ...

. It is the third bridge at this crossing to bear the name of the adventurer

John Ledyard John Ledyard (November 1751 – 10 January 1789) was an American explorer and adventurer. Early life Ledyard was born in Groton, Connecticut, in November 1751. He was the first child of Abigail Youngs Ledyard and Capt. John Ledyard Jr, son o ...

History

The first "Ledyard Free Bridge" was a covered bridge built in 1859 that was the first bridge across the Connecticut not to charge a toll. (It was the latest of several bridges at this site that went back to the late 18th century.) The bridge was named after Ledyard in 1859 because its eastern abutment was near the site of a tree that Ledyard felled during 1773 in order to make the dugout canoe in which he left

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

to continue his world travels. The bridge now standing was built between 1998 and 2000 by the

New Hampshire Department of Transportation The New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) is a government agency of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The Commissioner of NHDOT is Victoria Sheehan. The main office of the NHDOT is located in the J. O. Morton Building in Concord, N ...

. At each end it displays a pair of "bridge balls," the controversial Classical ornaments cast in concrete that refer to the gateway to Tuck Drive nearby on the Hanover shore. They are the product of a

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other words Arts and media * ''Concord'' (video game), a defunct 2024 first-person sh ...

architect brought in by NHDOT to infuse some extra aesthetic appeal into the design of the bridge. The Ledyard Bridge carries the designation of

New Hampshire Route 10A New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

and Vermont Route 10A, a short state highway linking

U.S. Route 5 U.S. Route 5 (US 5) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway running through the New England states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Significant cities along the route include New Haven, Connecticut; Hartford, Conn ...

and

Interstate 91 Interstate 91 (I-91) is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It is the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of the region. Its southern terminus is in New Haven, Connecticut, at I-95, whi ...

on the Vermont side with

New Hampshire Route 10 New Hampshire Route 10 is a north–south state highway in western New Hampshire, United States. Its southern terminus is in Winchester at the Massachusetts state line, where it continues south as Massachusetts Route 10. Administratively, the ...

on the New Hampshire side. The

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

uses the pedestrian walkway to cross the river.

Border location

Although the border between

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

and Vermont was set at the

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

shore early in the states' histories, the bridge's monument to that border rests near the middle of the crossing; the reasoning is that the border was fixed before the Wilder Dam pushed the Vermont shore westward during the 1950s. Image:Ledyard6.jpg , Ledyard from Vermont Image:Ledyard.jpg, Bore shaft operations on Vermont side Image:Ledyard (1).jpg, Bore shaft operations Image:Ledyard (5).jpg, NH abutment footing Image:Ledyard (6).jpg, NH view of old and new Ledyard File:Ledyard Bridge NH.jpg, Ledyard from New Hampshire

References

{{Connecticut River Appalachian Trail Bridges completed in 1859 Bridges completed in 2000 Buildings and structures in Norwich, Vermont Bridges over the Connecticut River Bridges in Grafton County, New Hampshire Road bridges in New Hampshire Road bridges in Vermont Former toll bridges in New Hampshire Former toll bridges in Vermont Beam bridges in the United States Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States 1859 establishments in New Hampshire 1859 establishments in Vermont

History

Border location

See also

References