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Watson Settlement, Aroostook County

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

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Inventory Number: ME/19-02-01x
County: Aroostook County
Township: Littleton
Town/Village: Watson Settlement
Bridge Name: Watson Settlement
Crosses: Meduxnekeag River
Truss type: Howe
Spans: 2
Length: 170'-8"
Roadway Width: 17'-6"
Built: 1903 or 1911
Builder:
When Lost: 19 Jul 2021
Cause: Burned
Latitude: N46 12.594
Longitude: W067 48.003
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: 1.5 miles south of Littleton on US1, then 2.6 miles east on Carson Rd. On a bypassed section of Carson Rd.

Watson Settlement Bridge, Littleton, Aroostook County, ME Built 1911
Bill Caswell Photo, July 16, 2012

Watson Settlement Bridge, Littleton, Aroostook County, ME Built 1903
Richard E. Roy Collection

Watson Settlement Bridge, Littleton, Aroostook County, ME Built 1903
1924 Maine DOT Photo, Richard E. Roy Collection

Watson Settlement Bridge, Littleton, Aroostook County, ME Built 1911
Bob Sheldon Photo, October 7, 2011

Watson Settlement Bridge, Littleton, Aroostook County, ME Built 1903 or 1911
Philip Wentzel Photo, August 21, 1986

Comments:
Some sources list the construction date as 1911, but it is on a 1904 list of bridges. It could have been repaired or replaced in 1911. The log crib abutments and pier were replaced with concrete after 1934. The bridge was repaired in 1958 and bypassed in 1984. The trusses were each 71'-6" clear spans. It was destroyed in a suspicious fire on July 19, 2021.

Sources:
National Society For the Preservation of Covered Bridges. Covered Bridge Topics, Volume LVIII, No. 1, Winter 2000, page 7
National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges. World Guide to Covered Bridges, 2009, page 36

Compilation 2026 Covered Spans of Yesteryear

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