Historical Society will present on covered bridges

COURTESY
NEWPORT — The Newport Historical Society, in conjunction with New Hampshire Humanities, will present the program “Covered Bridges of New Hampshire” by Glen Knoblock.   This free program will be held on Tuesday, July 17, from 6:30 to 8:00 PM, in the ballroom of the Richards Free Library, 58 N. Main St., Newport, NH.  The ballroom is handicapped accessible and light refreshments will be served.  

Covered wooden bridges have been a vital part of the New Hampshire transportation network, dating back to the early 1800s. Given New Hampshire’s myriad streams, brooks, and rivers, it’s unsurprising that 400 covered bridges have been documented. Often viewed as quaint relics of a simpler past, they were technological marvels of their day. It may be native ingenuity and New Hampshire’s woodworking tradition that account for the fact that a number of nationally-noted covered bridge truss designers were New Hampshire natives.  Mr. Knoblock will discuss covered bridge design and technology, and their designers, builders, and associated folklore. 

Glenn Knoblock is an independent scholar and author of fifteen books and over 100 articles. He is also the author and historian on projects relating to Northern New England bridges, New Hampshire cemeteries, and brewing history, and African-American military history. Knoblock has served as the main military contributor to Harvard and Oxford University’s landmark African-American Biography Project. He holds a BA in History from Bowling Green State University.