A Covered Bridge Burning to be Celebrated

 

York, PA - The plan is to set a line of 25 fires across the Susquehanna River on the evening of June 28 to commemorate the burning of the Susquehanna River Bridge 140 years ago. In 1863 Confederate General John B. Gordon led his brigade here after the capture of York Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, to the west, General Lee was leading the Army of Northern Virginia to Gettysburg.

Union troops retreated across the bridge and attempted to blow up one of the spans to stop the advance of the Confederates, but the bridge caught fire.

Today, all that remains of the old bridge is a row of vacant piers standing next to the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge on Route 462. The plan is to place grills and firewood on top of the piers. The Rivertownes Development Committee, which is planing the event, is looking for volunteers to set up the grills in advance of the event, and then to set the fires. A civil war encampment is also planned.