Watson Settlement Bridge, Covered bridge in Aroostook County, US
Watson Settlement Bridge was a wooden covered bridge that crossed the Meduxnekeag River, measuring approximately 150 feet in length. Its structure rested on stone abutments with a central pier supporting two distinct spans.
Built in 1911, the bridge marked the first crossing constructed at this location over the Meduxnekeag River. It gained National Register of Historic Places status in 1970, acknowledging its importance to American bridge engineering.
The bridge took its name from a nearby Watson homestead, reflecting how early settlers shaped the local landscape. This naming tradition shows how family names became woven into the geography of rural Maine communities.
The bridge remained open to traffic until 1984, when a new modern bridge was built nearby and the original structure was closed to vehicles. Visitors should know that the original wooden bridge no longer exists today.
The structure represented Maine's oldest surviving example of the Howe truss design system in bridge engineering. A fire destroyed the historic wooden structure completely on July 19, 2021.
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