It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Old Line State has an abundance of bridges. As a result of the state’s abundance of rivers and, of course, the Chesapeake Bay, there are hundreds of bridges located all across the state. The Gilpin’s Falls Covered Bridge in Maryland is a structure that can be traversed, despite the fact that it does not lead anywhere.
In 1860, Joseph Johnson spent $2,000 to construct the covered bridge known as Gilpin’s Falls, which is located in Cecil County. Since then, it has undergone repair, which means that it is just as amazing as it was before and remains a wonderful place to go exploring. The Gilpin’s Falls Covered Bridge also has a small aperture on the side that resembles a window, which allows visitors to peek out and take in the scenery of North East Creek. At particular seasons of the year, this hidden location is teeming with a variety of avian species.
Gilpin’s Falls Bridge, located in Elkton, Maryland area, is the longest covered bridge in the state of Maryland that is still intact. It is a single span bridge with a length of 119 feet and is located one mile north of Bay View. The length of the bridge’s clear span, in feet, is one hundred. Near the bridge was previously the site of a number of mills, one of which was owned by Samuel Gilpin and produced flour.
The new State Route 272 was constructed in 1936, which resulted in the old covered bridge being bypassed. After it was bypassed, it fell into disrepair and was left that way until the city of Salisbury expressed interest in purchasing the bridge and relocating it to a park in the city. In spite of the fact that their attempt was unsuccessful, it motivated Cecil County to save the bridge.
In 1958, a large blizzard caused the roof of the Gilpin Bridge to collapse, prompting the Historical Society of Cecil County and the State Roads Commission of Maryland to make the decision to perform extensive repairs on the bridge. In 1959, as much of the wood stock as was possible was utilized to reconstruct the bridge, and the following year, in 1960, a ceremony of dedication was held.
In an item that was published in the Baltimore Sun in November 1959, the cost of repairing the bridge was stated to be $11,000. The construction work was carried out by Harry Eastburn & Son of Newark, Delaware. In October of 1971, a group of thirteen adults and kids decided to hold a bridge party and kicked off numerous boards, which was the beginning of the vandalism that plagued the bridge. After that, in November 1971, additional damage was done to the west side of Gilpin’s. The price of the repairs was more than $500.