Keefer Covered Bridge No. 7
Why it's listed
Located near Washingtonville in Montour County, Pennsylvania, the Keefer Covered Bridge is a 78-foot covered span built in 1853 by William Butler at a cost of $498. It rests on cut stone abutments and uses the Burr arch trussing system, with a gable roof and rectangular portals of board and batten construction. Its side walls are sheathed in vertical planks of varying widths. The bridge was built near Geringer's Mill, a site about which little is known, and is possibly named after builder George W. Keefer, though the record is uncertain. Covered bridges replaced open wooded bridges because they lasted longer, and rapid town growth and farm-based commerce, including saw and grist mills, created demand for crossings linking those activities. The Keefer bridge is significant for engineering and transportation. Its portal design is unusual for Pennsylvania, and Montour County has only two surviving covered bridges, one shared with Northumberland County.
Significance in brief: The bridge is significant for its engineering and its role in transportation. Its rectangular board and batten portals are unusual for Pennsylvania. Montour County has only two remaining covered bridges, and one of them is shared with Northumberland County.
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 79003174, listed November 29, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | SR 346, Washingtonville |
|---|---|
| County | Montour County |
| Listed | November 29, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79003174 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architect / builder | William Butler (builder) |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 41.03311, -76.69150 (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 79003174.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6382699
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.