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“The focus of Newport’s Annual Covered Bridge/Arts Festival is the large number of covered bridges located within a short distance of Newport, NH. Covered bridges are not strictly native to New England. These symbols of tranquility are found all over the United States and beyond. However, within a 35 mile radius of Newport, New Hampshire, we are fortunate to have 22 of the most varied construction of covered bridges anywhere in the United States. Newport also has two of the only eight remaining railroad covered bridges left in this country. Those statistics are not only significant for our town, but for our state and our country as well. Our heritage of covered bridges serves as a reverent monument of the past. Each of these valuable historic relics tells a story of its own.

Covered bridges are in the valleys, between the hills, and along back roads. Enjoy the search for the hiding places of these wooden structures. They are long echoing tunnels, worn by the heavy iron shoes of horses; bridges that went AWOL in floods; and favorite lurking places for haunts and spooks. The roads that lead to them pass through some towns that have lost their bridges – and to some towns that have been more fortunate, recognizing the covered bridges that remain are priceless structures of antiquity and must be preserved for our “outdoor historical museums.”

Newport invites you to explore its winding roads, just slightly off the beaten track, where you will discover these 22 covered bridges, the likes of which you probably will not find anywhere else. You will probably find the landscape has changed little from the timeless hamlets, rolling hills, quiet brooks, and colorful fields admired by early New England settlers.”

Sharon Christie

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