| Old Blenheim Bridge | |
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HAER photo in 2004 |
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| Carries | Vehicles (1855–1936) Pedestrians (1936–2011) |
| Crosses | Schoharie Creek |
| Locale | North Blenheim, NY |
| Designer | Nichols M. Powers[1][2] |
| Design | double-barreled Long truss with center arch covered bridge[3][4] |
| Total length | 232 ft 0 in (70.7 m)[2] |
| Width | 26 ft 3 in (8.0 m)[2] |
| Height | 30 feet (9.1 m)[2] |
| Longest span | 210 feet (64 m)[2] |
| Opened | 1855[3] |
| Collapsed | August 28, 2011 |
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Old Blenheim Bridge
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| Location: | North Blenheim, NY |
| Area: | Schoharie County |
| Built: | 1854–1855 |
| Architect: | Nichols Montgomery Powers |
| Governing body: | Local |
| NRHP Reference#: | 66000570 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP: | October 15, 1966[5] |
| Designated NHL: | January 29, 1964[6] |
Old Blenheim Bridge was a wooden covered bridge that spanned Schoharie Creek in North Blenheim, New York. With an open span of 210 feet (64 m), it had the longest span of any surviving covered bridge in the world; although the structure's total length, made it second in that respect to the Bridgeport Covered Bridge (233 feet (71 m) long with a 208 feet (63 m) clear span).[3] The bridge, opened in 1855, was also one of the oldest of its type in the United States. It was destroyed on August 28, 2011 as a result of flooding from Tropical Storm Irene.
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Nichols Montgomery Powers[1][2] was brought in from Vermont to build the bridge by a group of local business men who formed the Blenheim Bridge Company for the purpose of constructing this bridge. The bridge opened in 1855, and remained in use for vehicles until 1932, when a steel truss bridge was constructed near-by. Since then, the bridge was maintained as a historic site open to pedestrians.[3] It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964.[6][7]
On August 28, 2011, record flooding along the Schoharie Creek, due to Tropical Storm Irene, resulted in the bridge being washed away and completely destroyed.[8]
Many sources simply claimed the Old Blenheim Bridge was the longest surviving single-span covered bridge, without getting into span-length vs. total-length. There are also sources that claim the Bridgeport Covered Bridge in California is longer. The New York Covered Bridge Society states that Blenheim bridge was 2 feet longer than "a bridge in California" (presumably Bridgeport), in terms of clear span. Blenheim's clear span was originally 219 feet, according to this website.
A report by the U.S. Department of the Interior states that the Bridgeport Covered Bridge (HAER No. CA-41) has clear spans of 210 feet (64 m) on one side and 208 feet (63 m) on the other, while Blenheim Bridge (HAER No. NY-331) had a documented clear span of 210 feet (64 m) in the middle (1936 HABS drawings). In August 2003, measurements of post-repair Blenheim Bridge abutments were 209 feet 2 inches (63.75 m) on the upstream side, and 205 feet 6 inches (62.64 m) on the downstream side.[2]
Historically, the longest single-span covered bridge on record was Pennsylvania's McCall's Ferry Bridge with a claimed clear span of 360 feet (110 m) (built 1814–15, destroyed by ice jam 1817).[2]