The 1879 Copeland Covered Bridge, also known as Copeland Farm Bridge, crosses over Beecher Creek in the town of Edinburg in Saratoga County, New York. Built by Arad Copeland, this small 35-foot timber-framed, Queen-post truss bridge has a gable roof and sits on fieldstone abutments. It is one of only two Queen-post truss-covered bridges in New York State. As the only covered bridge still standing in Saratoga County, it is maintained by the Edinburg Historical Society and carries pedestrian traffic across Beecher Creek.

Arad Copeland (1805-1884) came with his family from Guilford, Vermont, to the Sacandaga Valley in 1815, first settling in the Town of Day. In 1828, Arad and his brother Leonard moved to the Town of Edinburgh, purchasing Ely Beecher’s sawmill and carriage factory located along Beecher Creek.

Arad married Anna Elizabeth Trowbridge, daughter of Edinburgh resident Willard Trowbridge. The Trowbridges operated a brick kiln behind their home on what is now Sinclair Road. As a wedding gift, Willard donated the bricks for a house, and Arad built the home for his new bride ca.1832. The house still stands today across the road from the covered bridge.

Arad owned 35 acres across Beecher Creek, where he had a garden and pasture land. An open bridge below the house gave access to this acreage until the bridge was destroyed by melting spring snow and ice, so in 1879, he decided to build a covered bridge. According to family legend, resident Melzor Manning laid the stones, Jacob Latcher hewed the timbers, and Azariah Ellithorpe Jr. framed the bridge. Over the years, the bridge received a new metal roof, new flooring, and new sideboards.

The Copeland Bridge remained in the family until the fall of 1997, when great, great-grandson Robert Tyrrell and his wife Betty graciously deeded the bridge over to the Edinburg Historical Society. The Historical Society received several grants and waged an aggressive campaign selling “shares” on the covered bridge to raise money for its restoration. In partnership with the town, complete restoration of the bridge and 90% of site improvements were completed in 2000 and 2001. A re-dedication celebration of the bridge was held in June 2002, officially opening the site to the public. The remaining site work was completed in 2003.

Copeland Covered Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 6, 1998.

Located at:  N43 13.253   W74 06.016        -        WGCB #32-46-01

Photographed in May of 2023

Photos by Millard Farmer