Loys Station Covered Bridge

Loys Station Covered Bridge
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The original bridge in 1985
Nearest city	Thurmont, Maryland
Coordinates	39°36′31″N 77°21′5″W / 39.60861°N 77.35139°WCoordinates: 39°36′31″N 77°21′5″W / 39.60861°N 77.35139°W
Area	0.2 acres (0.081 ha)
Built	1860
Architectural style	Multiple king post
MPS	Covered Bridges in Frederick County TR
NRHP Reference #	78003175[1]
Added to NRHP	June 23, 1978

The Loys Station Covered Bridge is a multiple king post wooden covered bridge near Thurmont, Maryland. The bridge was burned by an arsonist in 1991 and rebuilt using surviving framing. The original bridge spanned 90 feet in one span, but has since been modified with a pier at the middle of the span.^[2] The bridge crosses Owen's Creek and is surrounded by a park.^[3]

History

Loys Station Covered Bridge was originally built in 1848.^[4][5] Between 1929 and 1930 the bridge was reinforced with a concrete pier and steel beams. The bridge gets its name from a Western Maryland Railroad station that stopped nearby the bridge in Loys. In 1978 the bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1991 the bridge was burned down by an arsonist who was trying to fraudulently collect insurance money. The bridge took three years and $300,000 to rebuild and was rebuilt to match the bridge as it was in 1930 after having been reinforced. Most of the cost of reconstructing the bridge was covered by insurance. On 4 July 1994 the bridge officially reopened for the public.^[4] In October 2013 the bridge was damaged twice by vehicles, but quickly repaired both times.^[6]

As photographed by Carol M. Highsmith

References

1. National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
2. "Loy's Station Covered Bridge". Historic Covered Bridges in Maryland. Maryland State Highway Administration. 2008-10-03.
3. Cherilyn Widell (August 1977). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Linganore Farm" (PDF). Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
4. Smedley, Jim. "Loys Station Covered Bridge". Maryland Covered Bridges. Retrieved 21 April 2014.
5. Coates, Patricia (9 July 2004). "Frederick Bridges, Uncovered". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 April 2014.
6. Loos, Kelsi (18 October 2013). "Loy's Station bridge damaged". Frederick News Post. Retrieved 21 April 2014.

External links

• Loys Station Covered Bridge, Frederick County, including photo in 1997, at Maryland Historical Trust