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Hamden Covered Bridge Dedication Held
Hamden, NY - July 28, 2001 - The celebration began at 10 a.m. with music by Robert
Sprague, country songwriter and performer followed by the grand reopening ceremony. The day
was filled with music by the Sidney Community Band, children's games, horse and wagon rides,
antique cars, chicken BBQ, raffles, balloons and free ice cream. Featured was a performance of
the Spoon River Anthology by the Little Victory Players
The bridge reopening ceremony began
with a welcome by Wayne Marshfield, Town of Hamden Supervisor followed by an invocation by
Rev. Bert Moore. The national anthem was sung by Ann Moody a covered bridge song by Robert
Sprague. Master of Ceremonies, Robert Cairns introduced the speakers:
The speakers were Jim Eisel, Chairman of Delaware County Board of Supervisors; Wayne
Reynolds, Delaware County Commissioner of Public Works; Congressman Sherwood Boehlert,
23rd Congressional District; Senator John Bonacic, 40th Senatorial District; Assemblyman Cliff
Crouch, 122nd Assembly District; Richard Wilson, New York State Covered Bridge Society; and
Wilmer Murray, Great Grandson of Robert Murray, all mercifully brief.
The speeches were followed by
congratulatory Remarks by Richard Roy, National Society for the Preservation of Covered
Bridges; Joseph Nelson, Vermont Covered Bridge Society; and Thomas Walczak, The Theodore
Burr Covered Bridge Society of Pennsylvania.
Special Presentations were made: by
Trish Kane - State and National Register of Historic Places Certificate; by the Murray Family and
Town of Hamden - Donation of Covered Bridge Sign; by the Town of Hamden - Donation of
Land by William Sunkenberg and family; by the Town of Hamden - Donation of Land by Canton
Wheat and family; by Canton Wheat - Donation of Covered Bridge replica to Town of Hamden:
by the Hamden Quilters - Donation of Quilt to Town of Hamden.
An 
on the Hamden
celebration
by Trish Kane
From all reports, the dedication of the newly restored Hamden Covered Bridge was a huge
success. The weather was fantastic, the speeches were excellent (and brief) and many special
presentations were made. Best guess estimate is there were around 500 people in attendance
throughout the day. For their assistance in organizing the event, the Hamden Community and
Historical Association presented members Bob and Trish Kane with a beautiful print of the
Hamden Covered Bridge framed with original wood from the bridge.
For anyone interested, you can still
purchase the special edition postcard of the Hamden Covered Bridge that was on sale during the
event. They are .75 each or 2/$1.00. If you would like to have the special cancellation added to
your card, just add the cost of a 21-cent stamp for each card you order and they will be happy to
cancel it for you. But please note, this will only be through the month of August. For more
information on how to purchase these beautiful cards, contact Ellie Klukkert, PO Box 9998,
Hamden, NY 13782. The phone number of the Hamden Post Office is 607-746-6909.
Hamden Covered Bridge
Nestled in the beautiful foothills of the Catskill Mountains, the Hamden Covered Bridge proudly
stands as an artifact of a craftsmanship of the past, and a picturesque reminder of another way of
life.
Built by Robert Murray in 1859, the
128-foot-long Hamden Covered Bridge is one of the last three covered crossings maintained by
Delaware County that still carry traffic across branches of the Delaware River. A contract to
construct the bridge was signed between Mr. Murray and the Town of Hamden on April 27,
1859, for the sum of $1,000. The 1830 Long truss design used by Murray was patented by
Colonel Stephen H. Long of Hopkinton, N.H.
When originally constructed, the bridge
was a single span, but in the 1940s, a center pier was installed for additional support. During the
early '60s the timbers and overhead bracing displayed signs for Kendall's Spavin Cure, Herrick's
Pills and Ayer's Cherry Pectrol.
The county repaired a lean in the bridge
in 1966 by adding two large buttresses on each side. Two new windows cut into each side pro-
vided a safe place for young folks to fish and allowed more light into the dark interior. That same
year, the bridge received its first coat of red paint. In 1967, the portals had a diagonal appearance,
but some time during the late '70s or early '80s the portals were squared off.
Restoration of the Hamden Covered
Bridge began in the summer of 2000, with contractor W. L. Kline, Inc. in charge. On July 19,
while the bridge was being lifted off its abutments in preparation for the restoration project, an
unanticipated mishap occurred. The top chord broke and approximately one-third of the bridge
had to be lowered into the river. Fortunately, the damage was not significant.
Restoration went on to include
replacement of the tin roof with a standing seam metal roof. Decayed bottom chords were
replaced with a single 130-foot glue-laminated chord manufactured by Unadilla Laminated
Products in Unadilla, NY. To keep as much of the original Long truss as possible, some truss post
members were relocated to accommodate stress levels in different areas of the bridge.
Work continued through the fall, and
on November 13, the bridge was moved back over the west branch of the Delaware River. Great
care was taken during the process to restore the Hamden Covered Bridge to its original beauty.
With the buttresses removed, and the diagonal appearance to the portals returned, she now stands
straight, cambered, and proud - a single-span structure once more.
Robert Murray
Covered Bridge Builder
Delaware County's most famous bridge builder was a precise and able Scot named Robert
Murray. Mr. Murray was born in 1814 at Eskdahmuir, Scotland and immigrated with his parents
at the tender age of nine. Murray tried store keeping and then took up heavy contracting.
Between 1854 and 1859 he built four
Long truss bridges over the east and west branches of the Delaware River. As he worked down
the west branch, he was careful to build each bridge ten feet longer than the one above to allow
for the widening stream. This precaution has helped save two of his bridges-at Downsville and
Hamden-down to the present day.
Later years found Robert Murray
building Town Lattice bridges, and he even tried an experimental Haupt truss or two, which he'd
read about in books on carpentry. Folklore has it that at the time the Hamden and DeLancey
bridges were being built, Murray, who lived in the hill town of Andes, would walk to his bridge
sites early Monday morning, board out during the week, and hike home again Saturday night.
During these weekly trips, it is rumored he always went barefoot, carefully carrying his shoes in
hand to save wear on them.
Margaretville was the next of the nine
recorded Delaware County bridges to be built by Murray. Two of his four sons, James and
Robert, carried the two-inch turned oak pins by wagon from Hamden to the Margaretville
site.
Murray married Margaret Dowie from
Andes and eventually settled in Hamden. He passed away in December 1898. His brother, William
Murray, Jr. was a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1868 to 1886. His son
Robert married Ida Mallory of Hamden. Robert Murray (the elder) certainly left his mark on
Hamden, as well as Delaware County.
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Acknowledgements - Text taken from Hamden Covered Bridge Dedication
booklet; photo 1 by Joe Nelson; photo 2 by Dick Wilson; photo 3 by Joe Nelson; photo 4
courtesy of Richard Sanders Allen
Joe Nelson, P.O Box 267, Jericho, VT 05465-0267,
jcnelson@together.net
This file posted August 5, 2001
