Contoocook Railroad Bridge
Hopkinton, Merrimack County, New Hampshire
Last checked 2026-11-01 · Sources · More New Hampshire bridges
At a glance
- Status
- Listed in the state's covered bridge inventory[1]
- Year built
- 1889[1]
- Truss type
- Double Town lattice truss, two-span[1]
- Length
- Not verified
- Vehicle access
- Not verified
- Parking
- Not verified
Directions go to the bridge's mapped point, not a confirmed parking area.
About this bridge
Contoocook Railroad Bridge is a covered bridge in Hopkinton, Merrimack County, New Hampshire. It appears in the NH Division of Historical Resources covered bridge inventory. The state record gives its construction date as 1889. Its structure is recorded as double Town lattice truss, two-span. Wikidata records it as crossing Contoocook River. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (reference 80000294).
Bridge details
- Town
- Hopkinton[1]
- Location / road
- Contoocook Village, Hopkinton[1]
- Year built
- 1889[1]
- Truss type
- Double Town lattice truss, two-span[1]
- Maintained by
- New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources[1]
- Crosses
- Contoocook River[2]
- National Register ref.
- 80000294[3]
- NH bridge number
- 10[1]
- World Guide number
- 29-07-07[1]
- Coordinates
- 43.22308, -71.71393[1]
History
The first structure on this site was built in 1850 when the Concord and Claremont Railroad laid its first 33 miles of track from Concord to Bradford, N.H. When trains began to run regularly between Concord and Contoocook, a "day of great festivity" was held. Speeches were made, the band played, and the cannon thundered. A thousand people sat down to eat at a public dinner that cost $200 to put on. The current structure was built in 1889. The bridge washed off the abutments during the great flood of 1936 and damaged again during the hurricane of 1938. The bridge was kept from washing downstream because the rails were bolted together at each joint. After the flood water receded, the bridge was drawn back to its location and restored. From 1962 until 1990 a Contoocook merchant owned and used it as a warehouse. In 1990 the bridge was given to the New Hampshire Division of Historic Resources under RSA 234:31. The Contoocook Railroad Bridge is the oldest covered railroad bridge still standing in the United States. The Railroad Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]
Text as published in the NH Division of Historical Resources covered bridge inventory, checked 2026-11-01.
Visiting
We have no official parking, accessibility or opening information for this bridge. Many covered bridges sit on working town roads. Park only where it is legal and safe, respect private property and posted signs, and check town or state notices for closures.
Not verified
We have not found an official source for: Length, Vehicle access, Parking, Accessibility, Opening hours or seasonal closures. We leave these blank rather than guess. Never assume a road means you can drive, park or walk here.
Map
Red dot: this bridge. Green dots: nearest bridges in our list. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Nearby bridges
- Rowell Bridge (Hopkinton): 2.7 mi straight-line distance, not driving distance
- Dalton Bridge (Warner): 6.2 mi straight-line distance, not driving distance
- New England College Bridge (Henniker): 6.4 mi straight-line distance, not driving distance
- Waterloo Bridge (Warner): 8.5 mi straight-line distance, not driving distance
- Bement Bridge (Bradford): 12.4 mi straight-line distance, not driving distance
Sources
- NH Division of Historical Resources covered bridge inventory: checked 2026-11-01
- Wikidata: checked 2026-11-01
- National Register of Historic Places (NPS), via Wikidata reference number: checked 2026-11-01
- Wikipedia article (background reading; not used for facts on this page)
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