Mays, Blaney Covered Bridge
Why it's listed
Near Claysville in Washington County, Pennsylvania, the Mays, or Blaney, Covered Bridge carries a road across Middle Wheeling Creek in Donegal Township. It is a queenpost truss bridge, a type of timber truss in which two vertical posts support the span. The form gives its end post length as 31 feet 6 inches and its road surface width as 11 feet 10 inches, and records its construction date as 1882. The bridge was once known as the Blaney Covered Bridge, named for J. Blaney, who owned land east of the crossing. It is grouped with other covered bridges in Washington and Greene Counties that were judged to illustrate a once-common Pennsylvania bridge type and the development of wood truss construction. Its condition is recorded as good, and the rural counties where these bridges survive have a comparatively high survival rate for structures of this kind.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the bridge as one of the covered bridges in Washington and Greene Counties that illustrate a once-common bridge type in Pennsylvania, and that represent the development of wood truss technology. The form notes a comparatively high survival rate for these structures in these rural counties. It is listed as part of a multiple-property group of covered bridges.
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 79002350, listed June 22, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Spans Middle Wheeling Creek, Claysville |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | June 22, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79002350 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition described as good. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 40.08816, -80.48743 (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 79002350.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4925058
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.