DURGIN BRIDGE
Sandwich, New Hampshire

Location:

One and one-half miles north of N.H. Route 113, two miles east of North Sandwich Village on Durgin Road spanning the Cold River.

Style of Bridge:

Paddleford truss with added arches

Year of Construction:

1869

Original Cost:

Unknown

Structural Characteristics:

The bridge is 96'0" long with a clear span of 72'0". It has an overall width of 19'0" with a roadway width of 13'10", and a maximum vertical clearance of 12'9". The bridge is posted for six tons.

Maintained By:

Town of Sandwich

World Guide Number:

29-02-07

New Hampshire Number:

45

           

Historical Remarks:

The first bridge constructed at this site was built to replace the ford, located nearly a quarter mile upstream. The ford carried the heavy traffic of bygone days across the river. The current bridge is the fourth one on this site, the others being washed away in 1844, 1865 and 1869. In 1869, the freshet was so violent that iron bolts used to connect the great bed pieces of the middle pier to a large rock were twisted and broken. The iron bolts were two inches in diameter. The existing bridge was built by Jacob Berry of North Conway. Berry claimed that the bridge was so strong that it could be filled with wood without causing it to fail. There is no evidence that anyone ever attempted to prove his theory. The bridge is named for James Holmes Durgin who ran a grist mill nearby. The bridge was also a link in the underground slave railroad from Sandwich to North Conway. Milton Graton and his son Arnold repaired and strengthened the structure in 1967-1968. It was rehabilitated in 1983 at a cost of $48,000. The Durgin Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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Table of Contents

New Hampshire Bridges

New Hampshire Covered Bridges
Compiled and edited by
Richard G. Marshall
Chief System Planning
New Hampshire Department of Transportation
Color photographs by Arthur F. Rounds
1994