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 Though
extremely versatile, wood has one obvious disadvantage - it
burns. In early February 1989, the Philippi Covered Bridge, West
Virginian’s oldest covered bridge nearly burned down when the
spark of a car set off a stream of gasoline that had run back
downhill from the overflow at a local filling station to the
bridge, destroying 60 percent of its yellow poplar timbers,
siding and roof, particularly on the west span.
On
September 16, 1991, two years and seven months after fire nearly
destroyed it, the Philippi Covered Bridge was returned to
service when then Governor Gaston Caperton cut the ribbon
officially reopening West Virginia’s premier wooden structure
According
to legend, Lemuel Chenoweth had convinced members of the
Virginia Legislature to award him the contract to build the
Tygart Valley River span by placing a wooden model of his
masterpiece between two chairs and standing on it.
Completed
in 1852 by builder Henry Hartley at a cost of just over twelve
thousand dollars, the double-barreled 286-foot Long truss
continued to serve US 250 traffic through floods and other
natural disasters until the accident.
The
successful return of the historic span to its original
appearance—work that set standards for future renovation of the
state’s remaining covered bridges—was the result of a
cooperative effort involving the governor, the Division of
Highways, West Virginia University, foresters and local
restoration fund-raising groups.
An ardent
supporter of restoration, Caperton brought the president of the
Senate, the speaker of the House and other state officials to
the site to almost immediately after the fire to assure local
citizens that efforts would be successful.
“Repair
whatever we can and replace when we must” was the rule of
restoration coordinator Dr. Emory Kemp, WV professor and head of
its History of Science and Technology graduate program, who was
aided by “meticulous research” by Carl Tiderman of
Alderson-Broaddus College in returning the bridge to Chenoweth’s
original design, with horizontal siding, a red roof and other
touches not previously seen by anyone now living.
Under the watchful eye of Kemp, who had restored other historic
spans in West Virginia, Virginia and New England, a 38-man crew
was formed, filing with epoxy the pieces of the bridge that
remained or shaping and joining new wood using old tools and
ancient construction methods such as wooden pegs. Work, done
under three supervisors whose former skills included
construction, carpentry and cabinet-making, included discovery
of nine minieballs first lodged in the beams during the Civil
War’s first land battle in 1863.
The yellow
poplar needed for restoration, estimated at $100,000, was
donated through state Forestry Association Director Dick
Waybright, with contributions from the US Forest Service,
Westvaco, J.C. Lumber and Allegheny Wood Products.
Located by
Georgia-Pacific personnel near Grassy Creek in Nicholas County
and Bolair in Webster County, the logs—at least 15 inches in
diameter on the small end, with eight required to be 56 feet
long and the others from 34 to 44 feet—were harvested by Bess,
Harry Vance and Dunsmore Brothers logging companies and loaded
onto three tractor-trailers owned by Bennett Logging and Ruckman
Trucking for transport to the Belington Industrial Park. There,
at a special sawmill set up by Ricotelli Fencing and Ware
Lumber, the 56-foot-long 7x10-inch-thick beams were milled by
Simpson Lumber Company, with Dingess Lumber manufacturing the
structural members shorter than 20 feet.
Under
local businessman Fred Crouch, the Philippi Restoration
Committee initiated numerous fund-raising projects, including
the sale of limited-edition 9x12-inch prints of the bridge by
Webster Springs artist James Moran, obtained individual
donations totaling $20,000 from throughout the United States,
including $500—its largest cash gift—from Lemuel Chenoweth’s
granddaughter in Michigan.
Following
completion of major restoration efforts, a contract was awarded
to install a new deck, sidewalk, handrail system and scour
protection for the bridge pier and repoint the stonework. This
final step brought the cost of restoration efforts to
approximately 265 times the original price to build the span.
The
state’s intent to capitalize on what it has learned by putting
to further use the skills perfected during restoration efforts
were evidence in mid-1990 when Governor Caperton announced an
ambitious program, estimated at $3.5 million to restore the
state’s 17 remaining covered bridges.
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