Today we test the limits of our photo spotters ability with this older photograph of an impressive building. Yes, we’ll label this “difficult.” Join the search and see what you can come up with. Send your answer to ebrack2@gmail.com.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, did scholarship research in identifying the most recent Mystery Photo. He wrote: “Today’s mystery photo is of the Hammond River #2 Covered Bridge, also known as the French Village Covered Bridge. It was formerly located along French Village Road, near the suburban town of Quispamsis and approximately 14-miles northeast of Saint John, New Brunswick. The bridge is no longer there!
“The bridge was a single-lane, single-span, 181-foot, Howe-Truss covered bridge that was built in 1912. It was significantly damaged during a construction accident that occurred on October 5, 2016. During a restoration and repair effort, a large, heavy excavator carrying a load of new floor timbers that were intended to repair and replace the bridge deck had exceeded the posted 12-tonne limit of the bridge, causing the excavator to bust through the wooden decking and undercarriage. While most covered bridges in America were lost because of storms and flooding, it is a shame that this was lost as a result of avoidable human error, ironically while attempting to repair the bridge.
“Before the bridge could be restored, the excavator’s owner led the operation to extract the machine. During this effort, inspections revealed that the significant structural damage, coupled with long-term rot and decay, would require substantial costs to properly stabilize and restore the timber trusses. Legislative funding was denied, and the decision made, to permanently remove the historical structure and replace it with a new, modular steel truss, Bailey-style bridge.
“Here is what the new bridge looks like (as of June 2022). It has certainly lost a lot of historical charm!”
The original photo came from Rick Krause of Lilburn.
Others with the correct answer included Jay Altman of Columbia, S.C.; Dick LoPresti of Berkeley Lake; and George Graf of Palmyra, Va.
- SHARE A MYSTERY PHOTO: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Click here to send an email and please mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
