Renovations completed on covered bridge in Falls

NEWTON FALLS — A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for 2 p.m. Tuesday to mark completion of the renovation of the Newton Falls Covered Bridge on Arlington Street.

The event is being held by the Trumbull County engineer’s office and city of Newton Falls.

Mike St. Jean, who lives at one end of the bridge, says one of his biggest questions will be what the bridge will sound like.

St. Jean moved into the house at the corner of Bridge and Jay streets about three years ago and got used to the sound of cars traveling over the wooden structure throughout the night. Saying it “lulled you to sleep,” he came to appreciate the sound.

“At first I thought it was a thunderstorm,” St. Jean said of the bridge. “I’m interested to see what it [the new bridge] sounds like.” He assumes it will be quieter, though the goal of the project was to return the bridge to its 1943 appearance and most of its original construction.

A covered sidewalk was added in 1921, and two stone piers were added to help support the span in 1943. The stone piers were replaced with steel in 1962, and the piers were replaced this time with piers that were built to look like the ones from 1943. Modern roadway and walkway lighting and closed circuit cameras for security and fire protection were also installed this time.

St. Jean said having the bridge open will restore a convenient route to downtown for him and his neighbors.

He said watching the project since April has been interesting because of the use of the original construction methods and materials and the fact that the workers from the Righter Co. of Columbus lived in the buildings around him four days a week while they worked.

“They did a great job,” St. Jean said.

Newton Falls native Ruth Sharec, a Newton Falls Library trustee who has worked in the library’s local history room, says the bridge is important to Newton Falls’ history because it was the main route in and out of the city for many years.

It's the second-oldest covered bridge in Ohio still in use in its original location, but it is also considered unique for having a covered sidewalk, Sharec said.

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com