Quechee Gorge Bridge, Steel deck truss bridge in Quechee, Hartford, Vermont, United States

The Quechee Gorge Bridge is a three-span steel deck truss on US 4 near Quechee village in Hartford, Vermont. It is 285 feet long, 41 feet wide and 163 feet above the Ottauquechee River. Its main span is a 188-foot parabolic spandrel-braced Pratt truss, riveted from steel panels and resting on concrete footings beside the stone abutments of the earlier bridge.

Built in 1911, the bridge was designed by local engineer John W. Storrs and fabricated by the American Bridge Company. It was originally a railroad bridge and was adapted for highway use in 1933, when its current deck was installed. It is Vermont's oldest surviving steel arch bridge and the only spandrel-braced one.

The bridge carries US Route 4 between Woodstock and White River Junction, and its sidewalks make the crossing part of a visit to Quechee State Park. The 188-foot main span is a parabolic spandrel-braced Pratt truss, the only one of its kind in Vermont. Riveted steel panels and I-beam stringers under a concrete deck can be seen from the walkways.

The bridge carries two lanes of US 4 with sidewalks on both sides, so you can walk across and look down into the gorge. It sits midway between Woodstock and White River Junction, near the southern end of Quechee Gorge in Quechee State Park, where trails lead down along the Ottauquechee River.

The 188-foot main span is a spandrel-braced Pratt truss, the only one of its kind in Vermont. Its steel members are joined by rivets, and the arch was probably cantilevered out over the gorge on stay cables until the ends met. The concrete footings sit near the stone abutments of the earlier bridge.