Lyle Covered Bridge
Why it's listed
Spanning Raccoon Creek in Raccoon Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania, the Lyle Covered Bridge is a queenpost truss structure with vertical board siding, a gable roof and cut stone abutments. Its side walls are pierced by three windows on each side, and the roadway is about twelve feet wide. The bridge belongs to a group of covered bridges in Washington and Greene Counties that together represent wood truss construction once common across Pennsylvania. Its simple truss design and local construction details are the basis for its inclusion in the group. The group is considered a comparatively high concentration of such structures in these rural counties. Two bridges moved from elsewhere in the group were relocated because of demolition threats, and the surviving structures remain in settings that suit their function. The bridge carries a posted weight limit of two tons.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the bridge as one of a group of important examples of vernacular wood truss technology in the two counties. The bridges are described as illustrating the once common bridge type in Pennsylvania and the simplicity of the truss types and local design features.
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 79003831, listed June 22, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | N of Raccoon crossing Raccoon Creek, Hanover Township, Raccoon |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | June 22, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79003831 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Areas of significance | Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is not stated for this bridge in the excerpt; the form's bridge plate shows a 2 ton gross weight limit. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 40.45343, -80.36602 (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 79003831.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6707880
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.