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DESPITE DIFFICULT YEARS, County’s Covered Bridges Persevere Frederick County is home to more than 212 bridges that span 20 feet or more, and 29 of them are considered historic. Ten are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Most of the county’s historic bridges are metal truss bridges, and one is the stone arch on Legore Road. But three are special, a breed of bridge that is dying out across the country – the covered bridge. Most of the county’s historic bridges are metal truss bridges, and one is the stone arch on Legore Road. But three are special, a breed of bridge that is dying out across the country – the covered bridge. The Roddy Road covered bridge rests just north of Thurmont off of U.S. Route 15, where Roddy Creek Road meets Roddy Road at Owens Creek. The bridge was built by the Roddy family about 1856, and is a single-span Kingpost design bridge measuring 40 feet long. It is the shortest covered bridge in Maryland, and is also the only one with a single kingpost truss, a truss frequently used for smaller bridges. Its stone abutments were rehabilitated in the late 1970s, and truck damage was repaired in 1992. Two contractors worked to fully rehabilitate the bridge in 1995.
Roddy Road covered bridge, just after completion in April 2017.
The original bridge sustained heavy damage by an oversized truck in June 2016. After dismantling the bridge and realizing that its existing timber was not reusable, an entirely new replica bridge was built. Dean Fitzgerald of Frederick, owner of Heavy Timber Construction, built the bridge that now stands at Roddy Road. When the new bridge was built, a new park was also constructed nearby, with a parking lot for visitors, a short walking trail, playground and restrooms. Bars were placed at both ends of the bridge to prevent oversized trucks from entering and damaging it once more. Utica Mills covered bridge, following a May 2015 rehabilitation.
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