Blair Bridge
Inscription
Hiram W. Merrill (1822-1898) of Plymouth, N. H., built this bridge in 1870 to replace a span of 1829 that had been burned by an arsonist. The bridge employs a truss design patented by Col. Stephen Harriman Long (1784-1864) of Hopkinton, N. H. It is New Hampshire's only surviving example of Long's patent to retain wedges at the lower chords by which the trusses were pre-stressed during construction, stiffening the bridge against the weight of traffic.
Covered bridge expert Milton S. Graton (1908-1994) restored the structure in 1977.
Location
Sources
More markers in Grafton
Stone Iron Furnace
Franconia, NH
Due west stands New Hampshire's sole surviving example of a post-Revolutionary furnace for smelting local iron ore.
Canaan Street
Canaan, NH
First known as 'Broad Street,' this early venture in town planning was laid out in 1788.
Samuel Livermore (1732–1803)
Holderness, NH
Proprietor of more than half the Town of Holderness, this jurist, congressman and senator was New Hampshire's first attorney general and...
Baker River
Rumney, NH
Known to Indians as Asquamchumauke, the nearby river was renamed for Lt. Thomas Baker (1682–1753) whose company of 34 scouts from...
Old Coal Kiln
Lisbon, NH
A reminder of bygone days, this stone structure was used to make wood into charcoal for the nearby iron smelters.