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Durgin, Carroll County

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Inventory Number: NH/29-02-07
State of New Hampshire Number: 45
County: Carroll County
Township: Sandwich
Town/Village:
Bridge Name: Durgin
Crosses: Cold River
Truss type: Paddleford & Arch
Spans: 1
Length: 96'
Roadway Width:
Built: 1869
Builder: Jacob Berry
When Lost: standing
Cause:
Latitude: N43 51.354
Longitude: W071 21.859
See a map of the area
Topographic map of the area
Directions: 0.8 miles north of jct NH113 (Beede Flats Rd.) on NH113A (Whiteface Rd.), then 1.4 miles right on Fellows Hill Rd. and just left on Durgin Bridge Rd.

Durgin Bridge, Sandwich, Carroll County, NH Built 1869
Richard E. Roy Collection

Durgin Bridge, Sandwich, Carroll County, NH Built 1869
Bill & Jenn Caswell Photo, September 18, 2022

Durgin Bridge, Sandwich, Carroll County, NH Built 1869
Bill Caswell Photo, March 24, 2007

Durgin Bridge, Sandwich, Carroll County, NH Built 1869
Bill & Jenn Caswell Photo, September 18, 2022

Comments:
The first bridge constructed at this site was built to replace the ford, located nearly a quarter mile upstream. The ford carried the heavy traffic of bygone days across the river. The current bridge is the fourth one on this site, the others being washed away in 1844, 1865 and 1869. In 1869, the freshet was so violent that iron bolts used to connect the great bed pieces of the middle pier to a large rock were twisted and broken. The iron bolts were two inches in diameter. The existing bridge was built by Jacob Berry of North Conway. Berry claimed that the bridge was so strong that it could be filled with wood without causing it to fail. There is no evidence that anyone ever attempted to prove his theory. The bridge is named for James Holmes Durgin who ran a grist mill nearby. The bridge was also a link in the underground slave railroad from Sandwich to North Conway. Milton Graton and his son Arnold repaired and strengthened the structure in 1967-1968. It was rehabilitated in 1983 at a cost of $48,000. The Durgin Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources:
Marshall, Richard G.. New Hampshire Covered Bridges : A Link With Our Past, 1994, page 85
National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges. World Guide to Covered Bridges, 2021, page 44
Chandler, Kim Varney. Covered Bridges of New Hampshire, 2022, Pages 174-177

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