WEST TOWNSHEND-After five years of fundraising and planning, the restoration of the historic Follett Stone Arch Bridge here has started.
The 110-year-old bridge is one of six dry stone masonry arch bridges in Townshend - all on the National Register of Historic Places and built between 1894 and 1910 by Civil War veteran James Otis Follett.
Follett served in Company D of the 16th Vermont Infantry Regiment volunteers and fought in the Battle of Gettysburg. After the war, he became a local civic leader and taught himself how to do dry stone masonry.
It's thought he built more than 40 bridges in the area. In addition to the six here, three still stand in Putney and another might be one in Brookline.
The Townshend Historical Society (THS) has led the way to restore all town bridges in an effort that dates back about a decade.
The West Townshend bridge crosses Tannery Brook and is used by residents of the back Windham Road area.
After an assessment of all town bridges, the THS secured the needed money to restore the Follett bridge on State Forest Road near the entrance to the Townshend State Park. Michael Weitzner of Thistle Stone Works in Brattleboro did that work.
An assessment of the West Townshend bridge showed it needed significant work.
Former THS board member Lee Petty led a grant writing program that ultimately secured several grants to pay for the $800,000 project.
One was a Save America's Treasures (SAT) grant, recommended by Sen. Bernie Sanders. That grant required town matching funds, which the THS raised with the support of Town Meeting voters.
Petty continues to manage the compliance aspects of the grant, which is administered by the National Park Service in cooperation with the Vermont State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO).
A preservation grant was also awarded to the THS for the project from the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation.
A restoration management team has been established to manage the project and administer grants. This team also examined bids and made a recommendation to the Selectboard.
Even after the Selectboard accepted the bid and signed a contract, the team continues to meet to ensure that the benchmarks to complete the project are met.
The team is comprised of Petty, Selectboard Administrative Assistant Connie Holt, THS Treasurer Helen Holt, THS Secretary Catherine Marrow, Selectboard member Katie Marrow, Road Foreman Jeremy Zumbruski, State Historic Preservation Officer's designated representative Jamie Duggan, and THS President Charles Marchant.
A complex job
Master craftsman Brian Post, owner of Standing Stone LLC from Chester, was awarded the project contract.
He has assembled a team of certified dry stone masons to complete the work according to specifications and best practices approved by all organizations involved in paying for the project.
"This project is a good example of how public and private groups can work together to achieve a goal," said Marchant, who checks in each Monday at the site with a list. "All the entities worked together to design, fund, and promote the project. The financial support of many individual contributors and the voters of Townshend have made this work possible."
Marchant said the projected finish date, as of this week, may be the first week in October, depending on weather.
During the project, the bridge is closed, but there is an observation area and webcam on site for viewers.
Post calls the project "a very complex restoration" in one of his videos. Work has been underway now for several months.
Noting the arch was able to be "completely uncovered in pretty good condition," Post also says the immense stones were uncovered also mostly in good condition.
"By and large, they're in good shape," he says. "You can also see the mortar originally used […]. It's really good, the sense of the construction that was used. It's not particularly refined, but it's lasted."
A complex wooden form has been constructed underneath the bridge and set on 4,000- to 5,000-pound stone blocks. It was designed to hold nine times what residential construction would require for weight support and to allow water through in case of flooding.
"Whenever you have an arch, stability is the issue," Post says. "The weight of the bridge on top actually holds it in place, so we've constructed the form basically to provide stability."
The form was also built about 3 feet lower than the arch with uprights between so workers can make their way through, chiseling out any weak, old mortar, cleaning it, and remortaring it to color match.
Post said the original 1910 mortar was a mix of lime mortar and early Portland cement. The new mortar is a natural hydraulic lime and is now an industry standard used for historic restoration mortar, stucco, and plaster. It contains no Portland cement, which can cause chemical burns and respiratory irritation, among other injuries.
Excavation was vast on one side of the bridge, taking out about 20 feet of soil. On the other side, which is the Route 30 side, the ledge is much higher, so not as much earth removal was needed.
"It's been quite the excavation process," Post said.
You can check progress at townshendvt.org throughout the project and see videos of the work at youtube.com/@standingstonellc/featured.
On the website, you can also find QR codes for each stone bridge that will show locations. They are all public-access bridges, but folks are asked to be respectful of neighboring properties when visiting and parking.
Signage at the stone bridges were obtained through a U.S. Department of Agriculture Business Enterprise grant (2020-21) and installed by the town road crew. The grant also paid for website enhancements and digital advertising.
This News item by Virginia Ray was written for The Commons.