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Early RepublicCivil War

Sachs Covered Bridge

Freedom Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania

Marker Inscription

Located just SE of here on the intersecting road. Built in 1852 by David S. Stoner, this lattice-truss bridge (based on a design patented by Connecticut architect Ithiel Town) extends 100 feet across Marsh Creek. Both Union and Confederate troops used it in 1863. Closed to automobiles after 1968, it suffered flood damage in 1996 but was restored by Adams County as a scenic bridge.

Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission

The Story

David S. Stoner raised Sachs Covered Bridge across Marsh Creek in 1852, using the elegant lattice-truss design patented by Connecticut architect Ithiel Town to span 100 feet of water. Little more than a decade later, both Union and Confederate soldiers crossed its planks during the 1863 Gettysburg Campaign, giving the quiet farm bridge a place in one of the war's most famous chapters. Retired from traffic after 1968 and battered by a 1996 flood, it was lovingly restored by Adams County as a scenic landmark.

Why it matters

A rare survivor of both nineteenth-century engineering and the Gettysburg Campaign, the bridge links America's covered-bridge heritage to the pivotal battle that turned the Civil War.

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Related people

  • · David S. Stoner
  • · Ithiel Town

Related events

  • · Gettysburg Campaign

Themes & tags

TransportationCivil WarCovered BridgesBridge

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