Richards Covered Bridge
Why it's listed
Built in 1852 by Obediah S. Campbell, this single-span covered timber truss bridge crosses the South Branch of Roaring Creek on Township Route 804, east of Elysburg in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. The structure has a clear span of 59 feet 7 inches between stone masonry abutments and a total length of 64 feet. Its roadway is 11 feet 9 inches wide, with a vertical clearance of 11 feet 6 inches under the timber portal. The truss is a sub-divided Howe type with a single queenpost. The queenpost took the place of the steel tension bars in William Howe's original patented design of 1840. Campbell adjusted the truss to suit his own preferences, a practice common among builders of patented trusses at the time. The bridge is significant as a surviving example of this regional variation and of mid-nineteenth-century covered bridge construction in the county.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the bridge as an example of a sub-divided Howe truss with a queenpost added for extra capacity, a variation on William Howe's patented design in which the queenpost replaced the original steel tension bars. The builder appears to have adapted the truss to his own preferences, as was common with patented trusses of the period.
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 79002308, listed August 8, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | E of Elysburg on T 804, Ralpho/Cleveland Townships, Elysburg |
|---|---|
| County | Northumberland County |
| Listed | August 8, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79002308 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Architect / builder | Obediah S. Campbell (builder) |
| Areas of significance | Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition described as good and structurally sound, considering the age of the wood and the effects of creek floods. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 40.84749, -76.50764 (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 79002308.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7330285
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.