The Smolen–Gulf Bridge is a
covered bridge
A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...
which carries State Road (Ashtabula County Road 25) across the
Ashtabula River at the
Plymouth
Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...
and
Ashtabula Township line in northern
Ashtabula County
Ashtabula County ( ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson, while its largest city is Ashtabula. The county was created in 1808 and later organ ...
,
Ohio
Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
,
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. At , it is the longest covered bridge in the United States – a title formerly held by the
Cornish–Windsor Covered Bridge
The Cornish–Windsor Covered Bridge is a -year-old, two-Span (engineering), span, timber Ithiel Town, Town lattice-truss, , covered bridge that crosses the Connecticut River between Cornish, New Hampshire (on the east), and Windsor, Vermont (on ...
in
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
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 ...
– and the fourth longest covered bridge in the world.
["] The bridge, one of 17 drivable covered bridges in the county, was designed by John Smolen, former Ashtabula County Engineer when the idea of bridging the Ashtabula River Gulf with a wooden structure was first conceived in 1995.
History
The county's 17th publicly accessible covered bridge cost approximately $7.78 million to build, equivalent to $ in ,
["] and features walkways along both sides. It is constructed of four sections
that rest on concrete abutments and three concrete piers, and rises more than over the river, carrying two lanes of legal-weight traffic.
The bridge consists of pieces of
Douglas fir
The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is the tallest tree in the Pinaceae family. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Or ...
or
yellow pine
In ecology and forestry, yellow pine refers to a number of conifer species that tend to grow in similar plant communities and yield similar strong wood. In the Western United States, yellow pine refers to Jeffrey pine or ponderosa pine. In the S ...
, with
hemlock or
yellow poplar
''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, lynn-tree, hickory-poplar, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus ...
being used for the siding.
The builder was Union Industrial Contractors and Koski Construction.
The bridge is located east-southeast of
Ashtabula
Ashtabula ( ) is the most populous city in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. It lies at the mouth of the Ashtabula River, on Lake Erie, northeast of Cleveland. At the 2020 census, the city had 17,975 people. Like many other cities in the ...
, at the same location as the previous bridge which carried State Road across the Ashtabula River. The old bridge, a steel bridge built in 1949 (National Bridge Inventory number 0430714), replaced the Crooked Gulf covered bridge (number 35-04-01) built in 1867.
[
The bridge was dedicated the afternoon August 26, 2008, where the name was unveiled.]
Gallery
See also
* List of covered bridges in Ashtabula County, Ohio
** West Liberty Covered Bridge in nearby Geneva, shortest drivable covered bridge in the United States
References
External links
Scans of opening day brochure
*
* Includes documentary information.
*
. Ashtabula County Covered Bridge Festival website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smolen-Gulf Bridge
Covered bridges in Ashtabula County, Ohio
Bridges completed in 2008
Road bridges in Ohio
Wooden bridges in Ohio
Pratt truss bridges in the United States