{"nrhp_refnum":"80003648","name":"Bells Mills Covered Bridge","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"W of Yukon","address_restricted":false,"city":"Yukon","county":"Westmoreland County","state":"PA","lat":40.219145980000064,"lon":-79.71006776999997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-06-27","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A single-span covered bridge with a Burr arch truss crossing Sewickley Creek near Yukon in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. The bridge is 95 feet long and 14 feet wide.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is the only remaining example of the wooden truss period of bridge development in Westmoreland County and the only Greek Revival covered bridge of its kind in Pennsylvania. It is presented as part of Pennsylvania's significant covered bridge heritage, with its Greek Revival portals treated as an unusual architectural feature.","narrative":"Sewickley Creek is crossed near Yukon by a single-span Burr arch truss covered bridge, 95 feet long and 14 feet wide, built in 1850 by Daniel McCain, who is named as both architect and contractor. Its pedimented gable portals use plain pilasters in the Greek Revival manner, and horizontal clapboard siding rises to arch level above a window opening. The bridge is framed in oak with two-inch plank floors and runners, and it rests on cut sandstone abutments, one of which has been braced with concrete. The original roof has since been replaced with corrugated iron. The nomination regards it as the only surviving wooden truss bridge of its period in Westmoreland County. It was the first of three bridges built across the Big Sewickley Creek at this location, the other two being replaced around 1917. The name is tied to the Bell family's grist mill, which gave the nearby crossroads its name, and not to the nearby community of Milbell.","period_of_significance":"1850","architect_builder":"Daniel McCain (architect and contractor)","architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Original roof replaced with corrugated iron; one abutment braced with concrete; listed as good condition.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:32.478276-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/80003648.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003648/1e749ad654-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003648/1e749ad654-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Leo A. McMullen, Photographer","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bells_Mill_Bridge,_Sewickley_Creek,_West_Newton_vicinity_(Westmoreland_County,_Pennsylvania).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Leo A. McMullen, Photographer</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bells_Mill_Bridge,_Sewickley_Creek,_West_Newton_vicinity_(Westmoreland_County,_Pennsylvania).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71998883","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bells_Mills_Covered_Bridge","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4884152"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/westmoreland-county/bells-mills-covered-bridge-80003648/"}