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Gibson's or Harmony Hill, Chester County

If you find errors in the data please contact Bill Caswell.

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Inventory Number: PA/38-15-10
County: Chester County
Township: East Bradford - West Bradford
Town/Village:
Bridge Name: Gibson's or Harmony Hill
Crosses: East Branch Brandywine Creek
Truss type: Double Burr
Spans: 1
Length: 98'-3" overall, 77'-6" span
Roadway Width: 13'-8"
Built: 1872
Builder: Edward H. Hall & Thomas E. Schull
When Lost: standing
Cause:
Latitude: N39 58.557
Longitude: W075 40.976
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: 2.5 miles southeast of Business US30 and Downingtown on US322 (Brandywine Ave.) and just left on Harmony Hill Rd.

Gibson's or Harmony Hill Bridge, East Bradford-West Bradford, Chester County, PA. Built 1872
Jackson Betz Photo, March 2004

Gibson's or Harmony Hill Bridge, East Bradford-West Bradford, Chester County, PA. Built 1872
Bill Caswell Photo, April 21, 2012

Gibson's or Harmony Hill Bridge, East Bradford-West Bradford, Chester County, PA. Built 1872
Jenn Caswell Photo, May 2, 2015

Gibson or Harmony Hill Bridge, East Bradford-West Bradford, Chester County, PA. Built 1872
Todd Clark Collection

Comments:
Chester County #120. 10-panel truss. This is the only covered bridge remaining over the Brandywine Creek, or the East and West Branches. It had replaced a "small bridge" (James), built in 1870 by Thomas Doan for $969.00, which had been destroyed by a flood in 1871. Harmony Hill Road is only one way through the bridge heading west towards US322. The bridge was closed in 1999 due to extensive damage caused by a hurricane when the siding was torn from the bridge by a large tree that floated downstream.

Sources:
Evans, Benjamin D. & June R.. Pennsylvania's Covered Bridges, 2001, page 73
Travis, Dale. Pennsylvania Covered Bridges List, updated to 26 Aug 2004, http://www.dalejtravis.com/cblist/cbpa.htm (23 Sep 2004)
Kipphorn, Thomas. Information received by email, May 2007
National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges. World Guide to Covered Bridges, 2009, page 104