Bardwell's Ferry Bridge
Why it's listed
Spanning the Deerfield River between Conway and Shelburne, Massachusetts, this 198-foot iron bridge was built in 1882 to carry Bardwell's Ferry Road about 40 feet above the water. Its lens-shaped trusses, made of riveted iron plates, lattice posts and pinned eye-bars, follow a design patented by William O. Douglas in 1878 and were fabricated by the Corrugated Metal Company, precursor of the Berlin Iron Bridge Company of Connecticut. The bridge replaced a wooden Howe-truss structure blown off its abutments in a January 1882 storm, which had itself succeeded a ferry run by the Bardwell family from the late 1700s. Only ten lenticular-truss bridges survive in Massachusetts, and fewer than fifty are known nationally. This one is early, unusually long and little altered apart from a new deck and a reinforced west abutment. It was listed for its engineering importance and its role in the local road network.
Significance in brief: It is a rare and largely unaltered example of a lenticular truss bridge, with only ten surviving in Massachusetts and fewer than fifty nationally. It is an early example of the type, built under William O. Douglas's 1878 patent, and is one of the longest documented lenticular spans in the United States. It also replaced a long-standing ferry crossing and a wooden bridge, tying it to local transportation history.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 00000076, listed February 10, 2000. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Bardwell's Ferry Rd. over the Deerfield R., Conway |
|---|---|
| County | Franklin County |
| Listed | February 10, 2000 |
| Reference number | 00000076 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1882-1949 |
| Architect / builder | William O. Douglas, designer/patentee; Berlin Iron Bridge Co., East Berlin, CT, builder |
| Architectural style | No style (metal: cast and wrought iron; lenticular truss) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Remarkably intact; road deck replaced and west abutment reinforced with concrete. Still used for road transportation. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.55573, -72.67766 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 00000076.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4860234
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.