603Podcast with Dan Egan
603podcast explores the people, places and things that create the culture of New Hampshire. From the Great North Woods to the peaks and valleys of White Mountains, in and around the Lakes, on and off the Seacoast, throughout the Merrimack the Monadnock Regions, to the Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee area. This podcast educates, motivates and discovers the stories that shape the "Granite State" and its impact on the country and the world.
Hosted by extreme sports pioneer Dan Egan, you’ll hear inspiring in-depth stories, from our featured guests that are the heartbeat of the Granite State through conversationally discussions with New Hampshire’s most notable, need to know folks and characters make New Hampshire truly special place.
603Podcast with Dan Egan
Preserving History: New Hampshire's Covered Bridges with Kim Varney Chandler
Join Dan Egan on the 603podcast as he interviews author and historian Kim Varney Chandler, who takes us through the history of New Hampshire's covered bridges, and her new book covering all the details of the state's beloved architecture.
Chandler reveals the practical reason these bridges were covered and explains why communities have invested so heavily in preserving these structures, with some restoration projects exceeding $1.6 million.
Did you know the state once had over 400 covered bridges, with 58 authentic structures remaining today? Perhaps most remarkable is that of the seven historic covered railroad bridges left worldwide, five stand in the Granite State. Learn how Clark's Trading Post acquired and meticulously reconstructed the world's only remaining active covered railroad bridge.
We explore the threats these bridges face, from arson (the leading cause of bridge loss) to oversized vehicles, and the recent legislation increasing fines from $62 to at least $1,000 for damaging the historic treasures. This episode also touches on the unexpected connections to American history, including Underground Railroad activity around the Durgan Bridge in Sandwich.
Whether you're a history buff, architecture enthusiast, or simply someone who appreciates New Hampshire's unique landscape, Chandler's stories will forever change how you see these iconic structures. Discover why these bridges matter, who built them, and why communities fight so passionately to preserve them for future generations.
Find Kim's book and more about her speaking events and covered bridges in New Hampshire at https://coveredbridgesnh.com/
For more information about the 603podcast visit 603podcast.com
Welcome back to season two of the 603 podcast, where we cover all things New Hampshire, from true crime and covered bridges to epic mountain marathons. We're excited to share another season of unique perspectives from across the Granite State with you. I'm your host, dan Egan, and this is the 603 podcast. The 603 podcast is sponsored by Mad River Coffee celebrating 20 years of roasting coffee, legendary egg sandwiches, meals to go and live music right off of exit 28 on Highway 93 in Camden, New Hampshire. It's also sponsored by Alpine Adventures, new England's premier thrill destination. Alpine Adventure has it all. Visit alpineziplinecom and let the adventure begin. Looking for summer fun? Whalestale Waterpark New England's favorite splash spot is your place, whalestale Waterpark, where the fun never ends. Visit whalestalewaterparknet.
Dan Egan:Today, this episode of the 603 Podcast we have Kim Varney Chandler, an author and historian who specializes in the covered bridges here in New Hampshire. This is a fascinating look at all our covered bridges all around the state of New Hampshire. We talk about the architecture, the history, the cultural significance and so much more. I learned so much in this episode and I hope you do too, kim. How are you doing today?
Kim Varney Chandler:I'm great. How are you? Thanks for having me.
Dan Egan:Yeah, it's nice to have you and it's a great topic. You know, I think here on the 603, we cover all things that are New Hampshire and what's beautiful, I think, about our covered bridges here in New Hampshire is you can find them. They're not hidden, so to speak. Some are right off major highways and things like that. And just curious, how did you fall in love with covered bridges?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, that's an excellent question. So my husband and I moved to Hancock, over on the southwestern part of the state, in 2012. And if you know Hancock at all, there's not a lot here. We have a Hancock market we used to have the Hancock in. It's been closed for a while and we have one sandwich shop. So if you need supplies you have to pack up and leave and find them elsewhere. So if you head eastward you go through the Hancock Greenfield covered bridge and so that's you know it's common for us to drive through it and we also kayak under it quite a bit.
Dan Egan:So you know, in your hometown you've got this covered bridge. Tell me about it. What do you like about it?
Kim Varney Chandler:It's not a particularly beautiful covered bridge. I mean, I think it is, but if you compare it to other older bridges, it was built in 1937. So it's it's relatively new. But I decided there must be more covered bridges in New Hampshire. So I bought a book that was produced by the New Hampshire DOT in the early nineties and had a list, and I like lists, I'm a list, I'm a listy person and set out to to photograph them all. So I I got real excited, drove around, you know, photographed about 20 bridges or so, and then I just let the project die, which happens, and in 2020, I found myself with not much that I could do, uh, but to be outside.
Kim Varney Chandler:So we my husband God bless him I dragged him around the state, we went and photographed the rest of the covered bridges and I found that I just wanted to know more. I wanted to know more about why is this bridge here, why is it still here, who built the bridge, how much did it cost? And there were different resources for each bridge, but there was no comprehensive place to look at all of that. So I started to research and the first place I went to was the Historical Society of Cheshire County, and Alan Romerill said to me what are you going to do with all of this research? And I said, well, I might put a website up. I'm not really sure. And he said, well, why don't you write a book? And I said I can't write a book, I have no business writing a book. And he said anybody can write a book. So I said, okay, challenge accepted.
Dan Egan:It just snowballed. That's amazing. I love it when you stumble into a treasure like that and then it kind of unfolds and of course things always take time. But I'm curious about the covered bridge. Why is it covered?
Kim Varney Chandler:I always ask people at the different programs I do why they think a covered bridge is covered, and a lot of people will say to keep the snow off, which is yes, it is true. Some theories are that the covered bridges look like barns and so the horses are more. But they're covered to protect the bridge's truss and you want to protect that truss from rot. So if you cover a bridge, it will last a hundred plus years. If you don't, it will rot out.
Dan Egan:I love the fact that it preserves the bridge, and here in New England, of course, there's lots of them.
Kim Varney Chandler:How many in New Hampshire? So there are 58 covered bridges that are considered authentic and have a state number. There are three box pony covered bridges that are a little different, and then there were about nine or so other authentic bridges that don't have a number. So it's and again, I'm a list person, so everything needs to fit in a little box, and they don't always fit that way. I do have a list on my website of 70. So I I challenge people, let's go find these, these 70 bridges, and do you know?
Dan Egan:the the history of the bridge. Did it come from a specific country? Did people bring the covered bridge to New Hampshire? Was it one population? Were there covered bridges in England or Scandinavia? How did they end up here in New England?
Kim Varney Chandler:That's a great question. I do know that there are covered bridges in China. I highly doubt that that architecture followed us here. I'm not 100% sure of the answer to that question. The first bridge that was covered, the first documented covered bridge in the US, was in Philly and it was built in 1805. And the research that I've read about that bridge they spent so much money on the bridge that they wanted to make it last longer. So after they built the bridge that they wanted to make it last longer. So after they built the bridge they decided to cover it and it was called the Permanent Bridge and it lasted 45 years. So it was a semi-permanent bridge.
Kim Varney Chandler:But yeah that's the first documented covered bridge built here in the US and the oldest bridge in New Hampshire was built in Haverhill and Bath in 1829.
Dan Egan:I mean, it seems like that's not that long ago in the terms of transportation and things like that. Of course, we're on the 603 podcast. We're talking with Kim Varney Chandler. Her book is Covered Bridges of New Hampshire and on your website and in your book did you lay them out chronological or how did you go about it?
Kim Varney Chandler:So I laid them out by number, which can be problematic to people. I put them either in town order or in ABC order, but I stuck to the state numbering system and for all intents and purposes. In the mid-1950s there was a short book called Covered Bridges of New Hampshire and it featured beautiful sketches of some of the existing covered bridges and the author had given them a number. So in the southwest corner of the state they took the Ashweelot, they numbered it one and they did a little driving map so as if you were to go up the Connecticut River Valley and then down and around. So since then other bridges have been added to that list, so the numbers are not really in a driving order anymore. So some people find that to be a problem.
Dan Egan:And I love the fact that the covered bridge is the cover. The roof is there to protect the bridge Over time. Are some of these bridges in danger? Do they need work or have they survived thanks to their roofs?
Kim Varney Chandler:So typically all of the existing historic covered bridges that we have left in New Hampshire have had several projects, usually more than one. The roof, the decking, the siding will usually get replaced on more of a regular basis. But the gist is to keep that truss as original as you possibly can, and some communities have been able to do that using antique 19th century methods to restore the covered bridges. Some have had to use different, maybe non-authentic, routes to keep their bridge still open, and that's a choice that some communities have to make in order to keep using their covered bridge. So every community is different, but I would put money on that every bridge in the state has undergone at least one serious project, if not two or three.
Dan Egan:Where I live up in Thornton, New Hampshire, we can go on a bike ride and we can sometimes go over four covered bridges the one in Plymouth, right by the restaurant there. Every time I drove over and I drove over it the other day I'm always upset that I can't see out of it, that the wall that they've built, the walls to the height, that I can't look left or right and enjoy the view. But I see that that's not a typical thing, that's not a trait of a covered bridge. Is that right?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, people have asked me that and I think it's just personal preference. I, I, some of the covered bridges are very open, um, and others are open on one side. They're not open on on the other. That could be weather patterns, the way that the water might, you know, might blow in, um, but they're all very different and and uh, yeah it, yeah, you probably shouldn't be standing in the Blair bridge too long looking out the window. Anyway, it's probably not a safe place to stand.
Dan Egan:That's I thought of. Uh, you know, it was probably the first go at distracted driving, you know, for too many people were looking uh at the view and not paying attention. Of course, as you know, the Blair bridge is a one lane bridge. Uh, our, our, most you bridge. That's not true either of a lot of covered bridges. They're not necessarily one lane right.
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, Most of the older bridges. They were built for horse and buggy traffic. They weren't built for FedEx trucks to be going through and they didn't have the same traffic that we have today. So a lot of communities, a good handful of communities, bypassed their covered bridges and built a two-lane, if not bigger, bridge near it so that traffic can get through, but they still save the bridge. But unfortunately a lot of communities just tore their covered bridges down and put in a concrete and steel bridge because it makes sense. You know, Concord used to have five covered bridges. You can't handle the traffic in Concord if those streets become a one lane road.
Dan Egan:So Wow, have you done a study on the lost covered bridges of New Hampshire?
Kim Varney Chandler:I yes, I am in such a rabbit hole of it. I love it. So every community that invites me to present, I present. I talk about these, you know, the existing covered bridges. I also talk about why we have any left at all. But I also focus on the lost bridges in that, in that community, which just sends me down an awesome rabbit hole of trying to research. You know there are we. We know about a lot of them, but sometimes I've found new ones that that we didn't know were there. So that's been really fun and it's helpful. I think it's fun for people that live locally to be able to say, oh, there was a covered bridge here. I think it just changes their understanding of how many covered bridges there were.
Dan Egan:You know I've found this over the years here in New Hampshire speaking to different groups and historical groups in different towns and things like that that there's a lot of passionate historians in New Hampshire. Have you found that to be true?
Kim Varney Chandler:I have. There are a lot of. Well, first of all, there are a lot of stories about covered bridges and they've been printed in books, which I initially thought well, if it's in a book, it has to be true. I've since learned that that's not always the case, except for my book, of course, just kidding. But a lot of those stories are family stories.
Kim Varney Chandler:You know, the Blair family, for example, um, have all kinds of stories about the Blair bridge and you know, driving through it and almost getting into accidents. And there's a story of the one of the Blairs that owned the um, the lodging place next to it had a grumpy customer and he put them on the back of the back of his truck and went over the bump real fast and knocked and knocked him off the back. So back of his truck and went over the bump real fast and knocked and knocked him off the back. So you know, there's all these just great stories, um, and if I can prove them great, and if not, you know what they're. They've been out in the ether for a really long, long time and, and that's the fun part for me, is meeting people and they share their, their stories with me about what the covered bridges mean to them, and when one woman confessed when she was a child, she carved Daniel Boone's name into the Coombs bridge and she still feels guilty.
Dan Egan:Is it still there?
Kim Varney Chandler:I don't know, I haven't looked for it but I just, yeah, she still feels guilty about it.
Dan Egan:So I think there's a one in in North Conway area. It might be a little in North Conway area, it might be a little north of Conway. That's only foot traffic now. Is that true? I remember driving by it. Is that one of the official covered bridges that you can walk across it but you can't drive across?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yes, In Conway there are two covered bridges. There's the Swift River covered bridge, which is closed so you can just walk on it, and they have picnic tables on it that you can sit if you would like to and just down the river around the corner is the Saco River Bridge that you can drive over, which is a pretty busy area.
Dan Egan:Yeah, and do you have a favorite time of year that you like to visit the bridges? That kind of draws you in.
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah Well, the foliage season, of course, I mean the photos are just outstanding. But there's also a lot more people and a lot more traffic, so there's that to deal with. Winter is fun. The photo is really beautiful if you can go right after a snow and in the winter and the fall and the spring, and in the winter and the fall and the spring I feel like I can get down under the bridge and kind of walk through less pucker brush and poison ivy and things like that that I don't really want to deal with. But it's neat to be under the bridges if it's possible Some of them it's not and we went, we kayaked, under the Cornish Windsor a couple weekends ago and thought we would put in at the boat ramp, go down, follow the river down, take some pictures and then just come right back. Well, that current is a little more strong than I thought it was, so we had quite a challenge. But it was amazing to be under it and to see how big it is when you're in the river underneath of it. It's amazing.
Dan Egan:Yeah, I mean that's an interesting perspective. What is the perspective you're going for by going under the bridge? What do you experience there?
Kim Varney Chandler:For me, especially with a bridge that size, that abutment or the pier in the middle. I'm never going to get close to that unless I'm in a boat right there. So that was really neat to see and it's, it's also neat to listen. Um, when you hear the, when you hear the cars going over the bridge, it's, it's, it's a whole different sound than when you're in it. Um, so that was, that was really neat.
Dan Egan:I love that you brought up sound. You know, cause sound really connects us to things, and to hear the sound of a car going over a covered bridge is really something, and hearing it underneath must be must be, almost a truer version of that sound. You hear the cuckoo, right?
Kim Varney Chandler:you do yeah yeah, you do. Wow, that's great I actually I, um I I started a video project of videoing myself walking or driving through the bridge, and I was on the blair bridge. Somebody challenged me to walk across that I wasn't going to do it. So I'm halfway through and a car comes on the bridge and it. The bridge just went and it's, and so I ruined the video because I jumped so yeah, that might enhance it in a way. Well, I don't know, it depends.
Dan Egan:So you felt the bridge kind of settle or or or flex.
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, yeah, and it just it made a really loud noise and it just startled me. I knew it was coming. I don't know why I did that, but yeah, it's just a different. It's a different way to experience a covered bridge. Absolutely.
Dan Egan:Probably one of the you know. I mean I imagine the Saco Bridge is well traveled under and a lot of people get to experience that as the Squam River Bridge into Little Squam. There's a lot of traffic going underneath that bridge.
Kim Varney Chandler:There is a lot of traffic and that is an absolutely beautiful covered bridge. It was built by Milton and Arnold Grayton, who, arnold, lives right down the road still from that bridge and we are blessed in New Hampshire to have the Grayton family as part of that process of not only restoring covered bridges using historic and 19th century methods but also to build covered bridges using those same methods. We're very blessed to have Arnold as a part of our state.
Dan Egan:Is there a big current covered bridge project going on right now?
Kim Varney Chandler:There is In Lyme. The Edgell Bridge was built in 1885 by Walter and his father, john Piper, and it's estimated repair right now is $690,000. So the town of Lyme is raising funds. They will receive funding through the state bridge aid program, which will provide almost 80% of that and the rest of that needs to come from private funding. So the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges did and still doing a fundraiser for the Edgell Bridge and during the New Hampshire Gives program this summer they matched up to $10,000.
Kim Varney Chandler:So, yeah, so they were able to give to that, and that organization, by the way, is based in New Hampshire. It is a national organization. Is based in New Hampshire, it is a national organization, but the president and several of the board members live locally. So it was great. Lucky for me, I can attend meetings and get to know the people and I am a life member of that group. What I appreciate about them is they help communities raise funds, but they also will give funds for communities to do small work on covered bridges but also to apply a fire retardant coating, because arson is still the number one cause of loss.
Dan Egan:Arson, really yeah. Do you have some examples of some bridges that have been set on fire?
Kim Varney Chandler:I do. In 1993, the Smith Bridge in Plymouth was destroyed by arson, the Corbin in Newport and the Slate in Swansea were all destroyed by arson. Three separate incidents. They don't think they were related, but they were all arson.
Dan Egan:That's so sad. Of course, the Smith Bridge there in Plymouth right and there's a nice plaque that kind of describes the rebuilding of that bridge and and the money and the original bridge that's.
Kim Varney Chandler:It's the world's strongest covered bridge. That's what they market it as yeah, you can drive a semi over it. That's it's. Uh, yeah, it's. It's made with, uh, pre pre-fabricated, uh, blue blue lamb timber. So it's, it's not going anywhere.
Dan Egan:Love to hear that, being connected to the bridges and and the historians, you must really be sort of enriching to you and, and I just wonder, do different bridges do you feel connected to the past and, if so, has any stood out, or do you feel drawn to that connection, the historic side of it?
Kim Varney Chandler:I do and I'm still learning, believe it or not, but a couple of examples of covered bridges that are special in that way to me. In Sandwich the Durgan Bridge was named after James Durgan and his wife was Jane Varney, who's very distantly related to me, but not anything close. I tried, but they were Underground Railroad station masters, so they helped bring enslaved people to freedom and they lived right next to the bridge. So you have to think that that bridge may have seen things I don't know.
Dan Egan:Sandwich is special like that in a lot of different ways. There's a lot of people that say that Sandwich has some mystical things going on there.
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, like buried treasure, right? Is that what I heard somewhere?
Dan Egan:Yeah, I live right on the other side of Sandwich Notch Road, so I love going over there and I like going into Sandwich off the Notch Road. It's a great way into Sandwich and you can beat the traffic into the Sandwich Fair, of course, nice. As I was thinking about our talk today, I was wondering what is the importance of these bridges to New England and New Hampshire specifically? I know they're iconic and I know they're scenic, but what is the real significance of these bridges?
Kim Varney Chandler:When the NSPCB did their first world guide of covered bridges, which is a list of all the bridges, obviously in the world there were I think there were 2,000 covered bridges and now less than half of those stand and New Hampshire had at some point. I mean, the number varies, but I'm going to say over 400. Of the ones that we have left, only 46 of them are over 100 years old and, especially with communities that have a covered bridge, they are very proud of their bridge. It is their bridge. Make no mistake, Some of the town seals will even have a covered bridge on their seal. It is, you know, the mark of their town is that they have a covered bridge.
Kim Varney Chandler:And if you think about I'll take Bradford the town of Bradford has one covered bridge left and it needed some work and they applied for funding through the federal, applied for federal and state funding. It took a really long time for that process to go through. The voters were presented with their 20% and they voted yes. There was no discussion, there was no debate, it was just yes, and that was a $1.6 million project.
Dan Egan:Wow, there's that connection right, there's that New Hampshire connection, that town connection. Have you worked with the state as far as marketing or the branding of with the state, marketing and tourism around the bridges?
Kim Varney Chandler:some I have. I um they they just updated. Actually, their website is is fabulous. They have a listing of all the covered bridges with um gps coordinates that you can click right on. It is a draw people. People come here specifically to see covered bridges, which is amazing to me, and I've met a lot of people along the way who are trying to see them all. So there are people. You know. Some people are hiking the 4,000 footers, some people are collecting every single covered bridge, or maybe doing both.
Dan Egan:I don't know, or maybe doing both. I love that there's that idea that it's special here in New Hampshire. It can be something we take for granted. Do you feel that it's special here in New Hampshire? It can be something we take for granted? Do you feel that there's a little bit of that as well?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yes, I do, especially with people who are driving oversized vehicles through the covered bridges. It's following what their smartphone tells them to do and they drive right through. The good news is, in New Hampshire just actually a few months ago the governor signed into law two new laws that protect covered bridges. So initially, if you were to hit a covered bridge with your oversized truck, the fine was $62. Oh my gosh, yeah. So now the fine is at least $1,000. And if you cause traffic to not be able to flow, then the the fine goes up quite, quite a bit. And the other bill is to allow communities to put cameras on either side of the bridge so they can catch the people who damage the bridge, because a lot of them try and leave.
Dan Egan:So, yeah, so if they from vandalism, arson and oversized vehicles. Yes, the book the Covered Bridges of New Hampshire. How long has it been out for?
Kim Varney Chandler:Covered Bridges of New Hampshire was published in November of 2022 by Peter E Randall publisher, and that was an amazing process for me because I had been sitting on my couch on my laptop writing in a Word document for a couple of years and I sent that off, sent the photos. The NSPCB loaned me use of the historic photos and they just put it together in this beautiful format. When it came back to me, I was like, oh, this is it. This is exactly what I wanted it to be. It's been a wonderful journey.
Dan Egan:That's a great feeling when it's exactly how you pictured it, and of course, that must have led to a lot of different things. What has it opened up for you, having the book and being an author and a historian?
Kim Varney Chandler:So I've been traveling around the state, which is so much fun presenting programs, and I met so many people and so many things I wanted to put in the book. I did my own podcast. So many things I wanted to put in the book. I did my own podcast. I have 21 episodes with different people about. You know different trust designs and different bridge projects and why is the bridge named after the widow Dalton, and you know how did you raise the money for this bridge? So it's been fun to be able to talk a little bit more and to capture those stories from the people that genuinely care about the bridges.
Dan Egan:And what's the name of that podcast? How can people hear it?
Kim Varney Chandler:It's called Covered Bridges of New Hampshire and it's on all of the podcast places, so it's on Spotify and Apple. You can watch it from the website too, if that's something you'd like to do, and yeah, that's great.
Dan Egan:We'll definitely share that here at the 603. I get the feeling that you don't sit idly doing nothing. What's what's next for you?
Kim Varney Chandler:I don't know. I I've also been researching New Hampshire bridge rights. So the men mostly men who built the covered bridges. I've been trying to do a deep dive into their histories, the bridges that they built. What are their stories? And so far I've been trying to do a deep dive into their histories, the bridges that they've built, what are their stories? And so far I've just published them on my website. But that's been a lot of fun. Still trying to figure out who built certain covered bridges. I don't know that I'll ever find those records, but I'm going to keep looking. The Stark Bridge is one that lots of thoughts and people have feelings on who built the bridge, but stark doesn't have any records to prove it. But I'm not.
Dan Egan:I'm not giving up do you have a favorite? Do you have a top three? Covered bridges that and, and why?
Kim Varney Chandler:I don't know if I should pick a favorite. It's like picking your favorite child. I shouldn't do that. Um, there are some that I I really enjoy seeing and I feel a little bit more connected to. One of them is so there are seven historic covered railroad bridges left in the world, and New Hampshire has five Wow, which is special and one of them is the Pier Bridge and it's on the sugar river rail trail from Claremont to Newport. There are actually two along that that trail.
Kim Varney Chandler:The right bridge is the other. The pier bridge is 228 feet long and it's huge and when you stand in it you just you think about an old steam engine train coming through there and it's just so powerful to stand there and realize how small you are and how large this beautiful bridge is. So that kind of speaks to me, and I also being at the Corbin Bridge. For example. That bridge was destroyed by arson. The townspeople privately raised the money to supplement what the insurance paid for and they hired Arnold Grayton to come and build an authentic covered bridge and that process meant so much to the Newport community. So it feels special to be there to know that that bridge was built using antique 19th century methods with the community helping, and it just means so much to them?
Dan Egan:And is that the gentleman who's still alive there in Holden? Yes, yes, wow, and tell me his name again.
Kim Varney Chandler:Arnold Graydon.
Dan Egan:Oh nice, how old is Arnold?
Kim Varney Chandler:I think he's 87. Oh, he's young. Yeah, very much so, very much so. Yeah, he's young. Yeah, very much so, very much so. Yeah, he's a blessing.
Dan Egan:And does he have any projects going on that you know of right now?
Kim Varney Chandler:I'm sure. I'm sure he does. I'm not exactly sure what they're up to now, but they're always busy. Yeah, always busy.
Dan Egan:That's cool. So that's a long bridge. So is there a covered bridge on a rail trail, on an active railroad line?
Kim Varney Chandler:There is. It's at Clark's Trading Post or Clark's Bears now today?
Dan Egan:Okay, yeah.
Kim Varney Chandler:And this is actually a great story. So the Clarks brothers wanted to put a railroad on their on their property, which they've called the white mountain rail road, but it goes around, it goes around the property. So they went to barry vermont and they purchased this covered bridge for a thousand dollars and the body of a ford model t touring car and they took it apart in the winter. They numbered every single piece and brought it back to Lincoln where they assembled it on the property. They called the process Playing Bridge, which I think is hilarious. Yeah, actually it's the only active covered railroad bridge still in use.
Dan Egan:Wow, In New Hampshire.
Kim Varney Chandler:In the world, in the world, mm-hmm yeah.
Dan Egan:How about that?
Kim Varney Chandler:and that that's where the wolfman jumps out and shoots at your child with a shotgun from his cheap. So yeah, we had a. We had a backstage tour there and we were able to stand with him when the train went by.
Dan Egan:It was hilarious uh, I know I've known a few of the wolfman over the years and it's amazing that that still goes. Yeah, that's awesome, it's really something. But it's again, you know, a piece of New Hampshire, Americana, Americana all the way. What's the shortest coverage bridge?
Kim Varney Chandler:So the shortest authentic covered bridge in New Hampshire is in Langdon and it's called the Prentiss Bridge and it's 35 feet long 35 feet.
Dan Egan:Yes, over over what does go over river?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, it goes over Prentiss Brook. I think I'd have to. It might be the colder river, I'll have to look. But yeah, so I work in Langdon. Langdon has two covered bridges. One is they're a few miles apart and the town bypassed them both. So they they built the cheshire turnpike around the apprentice bridge to to save this little tiny 35 foot bridge. Um, and it's, it's still there today.
Dan Egan:It was built in 1874 fantastic it's definitely worth a visit yeah, I love that, I love that, and so what's your website?
Kim Varney Chandler:my website is coveredbridgesnhcom and lots of resources there. I do have those checklists so you can print them off and keep them in your car and check off the bridges as you travel around. I do have an interactive Google map as well, so if you have a smartphone, you can find the bridge you want and push it and off you go. I have some blog posts. I have the podcast. You can purchase the book from me if you'd like, but it's for sale at all of the local bookstores. So I'm a huge fan of supporting our local bookstores and it's all over the state.
Dan Egan:Are you speaking engagements? Can we find out where to find you and go listen?
Kim Varney Chandler:Yes, you can. Yes, thank you for mentioning that. Yeah, they're all listed there. I have, I think, eight more engagements through the end of the year.
Dan Egan:And have you gone out of state to give your talks and to talk to audiences?
Kim Varney Chandler:I went to Vermont once, but I was right across the river, so I didn't stray far, didn't stray, I didn't stray far, but I, yeah, I think I'll stick to New Hampshire and I'm just curious like do you think there'll be any new covered bridges in our future?
Kim Varney Chandler:I, I hope so. I, I, I definitely do. I think it would depend on if that community, you know, feels like that's something that they want to commit to and they would have to obviously fund it. People mention it to me a lot. They're like, oh, I drove over this bridge the other day. You should call the town and have them build a bridge. That's not my purview, but I think that would be great. We have had several authentic covered bridges built. The first we had the pier bridge I mentioned earlier was the last historic bridge in 1907. And then the Greatons built the New England College Bridge in 1972. And that was the start of building some new authentic bridges here. So hopefully we'll have some more.
Dan Egan:And for all the people out there that haven't gone or specifically do a covered bridge maybe in a while or not at all, why should we go?
Kim Varney Chandler:I feel very strongly that people need to understand where we came from and what was here before us and why it's still here. It's so easy in our culture to just throw things away, tear things down. You buy an old house and it's old and you don't like it, so just tear it down and build a new one, and I understand that. But if we don't hang on to the history that we have in the state, we're not going to have it. And it's important to understand why is that bridge there, why was it built in the first place and who built it? Why was it built in the first place and who built it and why did the town spend?
Kim Varney Chandler:You know why did the town of Bath in 1832 spend $3,300, which is equivalent to $900,000 today to build a covered bridge Like why and why is it still here? You know who has advocated for it, who has worked on it, who loves this bridge, who cares about it. That's critical, I feel, for us, especially if you're from New Hampshire, to understand what our state is and what it offers. And that's one piece of it, you know the mountains are another piece, the beach is another. You know another piece of that, and I just think it's. It's critical to understand it.
Dan Egan:Well, I loved your perspective today, Kim, and thanks so much for joining us on the 603.
Kim Varney Chandler:Yeah, thank you for having me.
