The Theodore Burr Covered Bridge
Society of Pennsylvania, Inc.
Monthly Business Meeting
Historic Poole Forge
Saturday, September 11, 2021 12:00
p.m.
President Tom Walczak
called the meeting to order at 1:35 p.m. after a picnic lunch. He welcomed everyone, had a moment of silence
in remembrance of 9/11 and led the Pledge of Allegiance.
NEW
MEMBERS AND GUESTS: Present were Diane Brannon-Nordtomme and Sarabeth Kohut, new members; Al and Karen Gentle, 1st
meeting as members; Janet Orland (returning after 3 yrs absence).
APPROVAL
OF MINUTES: Tom Walczak reminded everyone the August 2021 Meeting Minutes
are available for review near the tables; he will ask for approval later in the
meeting.
TREASURER’S
REPORT: Judy Kuether
reported there are 379 members for 2020-2021 and 149 members for 2021-2022; one
deceased member, Clyde Scheib.
MEMBERS’
REPORTS:
Joe McCarthy: An Amish crew will be replacing the
floor at Shearer’s Bridge. The delay
with Hassenplug bridge is due to suppliers; plan for
springtime to remove iron grates and put in wood floors. - Joe is awaiting
payment of funds to start work on Bartrams and Kintersburg Bridges.
- Rapp’s Dam Bridge suffered more
damage with the storm (huge tree broke main tie/post). This is in addition to the damage by the
Penske truck (parts of bridge still stuck in the rental truck on its return; will
be a felony charge for the driver).
- No structural damage to Speakman’s
Bridge from the storm, however 40% of boards are broken off.
Steve Wolfhope: Gloria/Steve enjoyed the well-run
safari; also saw 18 of 22 bridges in Northern Ohio.
Connie McLaughlin: Connie/Tim attended safari and said
it was fantastic. Extended their trip to
see more bridges in 6 states (OH, MI, IN, KY, WV, PA) driving 3300 miles to see
72 bridges in total.
OFFICERS’
REPORTS:
President Tom Walczak – Tom
attended the Ohio safari and gave kudos to Jim/Gloria Smedley
and Bob/Judy Kuether for a great safari (saw 18 bridges
in 4 counties). Knowlton Bridge in Monroe County has 1 of 3 spans still
standing; there are plans to rebuild.
- Next weekend,
September 18th-19th, is the Washington-Green County Covered Bridge Festival.
First Vice President Jim Smedley: Gloria/Jim visited 9 covered bridges on September 3rd looking
for any damage from the recent storm on September 1st. Found
damage to some of them most notably: Gibson’s, Speakman #1, Linton-Stevens, all
in Chester County; South Perkasie in Bucks County; and we lost Rudolph &
Arthur Bridge in Chester County. Foxcatcher Farms in MD was also damaged
at the lower siding as well as Pine Grove in Chester and Lancaster counties and
we know that Rapp’s Dam also was damaged on both lower sides. Jim’s sure
Smith’s Bridge in Delaware was damaged for the water was nearly half way up the
bridge but he has not seen anything about it yet. Hunsecker’s
Mill Bridge had water at least to the bottom of the bridge. Jim’s also
concerned that there may be some damage to more Bucks County bridges but he has
not heard anything yet.
Our
safari was well received and Jim thanked everyone for making it
successful. Safaris go well when everyone follows the rules. Jim
will send out the group photos shortly for all who attended the safari.
Second
Vice President Ray Finkelstein
– Not present
Third Vice President Frank Mailey
– Pam/Frank enjoyed safari. After the
Ohio safari, we traveled to Washington County, PA with Bob/Judy Kuether and saw 11 more bridges. All looked good except Ebenezer Bridge which
needs a second coat of paint.
Fourth Vice President Bob Griner
– KC/Bob attended safari and agree it was an outstanding job in planning. They went with Tim/Connie McLaughlin and saw
5 more bridges in Ohio and then to Ashtabula, OH to see 13 bridges.
Treasurer Bob Kuether – Judy/Bob attended safari. Saw 11 other bridges in Washington County, PA
on the way home.
- To date, 217 calendars have been
sold for 2022.
Historian
Fred Moll – Not present; report emailed. On August 3, 2021 Fred
gave a PowerPoint program in Wernersville on The Covered Bridges of Berks
County. This was his first program since COVID Virus canceled everything;
about 30 senior citizens in attendance and they appreciated the
program.
- In the August 16th Reading Eagle,
there was an ad for bids to replace the Pleasantville Covered Bridge headache
bars, one of which was destroyed by a garbage truck. From reviewing the
construction plans (formally called blue prints) it appears the headache bars
(terminology used in the contract) will still be imbedded in the abutment walls
instead of moving them away from the abutments and bridge. There will be
a suspended bar below the headache bar that will be attached by chains and that
will have a sign on it stating “10ft 5in” for the clearance. It will be a while until the bids are
received, a contract is signed, and the project gets finished. For now, the Bridge is temporarily open for
traffic.
- Fred visited the five existing covered bridges
of Berks County which all made it through the flood of Ida: Wertz’s Bridge is in good shape; Kutz’s Mill Bridge is not in bad shape but has a pothole in
cement floor; Dreibelbis Bridge is still an
outstanding example of good craftsmanship and is in good shape;
Greisemer’s Mill Bridge could use some touchup work, but has a solid floor
and roof.
Corresponding Secretary Pam Heisey – Pam read in the newspaper that Hunsecker’s Mill and Pinetown Bridges were OK after the
flooding.
Recording Secretary Pam Mailey –
Pam assisted Bob/Judy Kuether with inventory of
clothing for upcoming festivals; note the new bar-code labels on the hoodies
that Judy developed for scanning.
- Pam was contacted by Keith Greenawalt, Director of Dillsburg
Area Public Library about a Covered Bridge Presentation similar to what
Bob/Judy Kuether did for the Red Land Library a
couple years ago. We will be meeting
with him on September 23rd to finalize plans for the October 19th
presentation.
NEWSLETTER:
Jim Smedley reported
the deadline to submit information is October 3rd.
ILLNESSES/DEATHS
of MEMBERS: Clyde Scheib, long time member, passed away at age 95. His wife, Alda,
reported they plan to continue the luminaries for the holidays at Kennedy
Bridge.
- Linda Finkelstein is still having health
and stability problems.
OLD BUSINESS: Bob Kuether
showed a covered bridge quilt that was donated to the Society. It will be raffled off at December’s
meeting. Tickets are on sale now – 3
tickets for $1.
ELECTION
OF OFFICERS 2021-2022: Tim and Connie McLaughlin comprise the
Nominating Committee for 2021-2022 Officers.
Tim thanked Tom Walczak for all his efforts as
the outgoing President. Tim stated each
position, read the nominee and asked for other nominations from the floor, of
which there were none. Following are the
elected Officers for 2021-2022:
President: Bob Kuether
1st Vice President: Jim Smedley
2nd Vice President: Ray Finkelstein
3rd Vice President: Frank Mailey
4th Vice President: Tony Abramo
Recording Secretary: Pam Mailey
Corresponding Secretary/Program
Director: Pam Heisey
Treasurer: Judy Kuether
Historian: Fred Moll
NEW
BUSINESS: Judy Kuether reported The
Columbia-Montour Covered Bridge and Arts Festival has moved from Knoebel’s to the Bloomsburg Fair grounds and will be held
the first weekend in October.
Judy asked for suggestions for the
holiday dinner on December 12th.
The usual location, Dutch Way Restaurant, is not offering a buffet for
groups. One option is to have the dinner
at the Manheim Community Center before the meeting with pot-luck.
- Joe McCarthy was contacted by HGTV
Restoration show, looking for projects to highlight for their 2nd or
3rd season. Joe may be able
to get Hassenplug Bridge project on the show.
- Tony Abramo
volunteered to lead another mini-safari; asked if the person who mentioned this
would contact him for the area.
- The 2022 Safari will be in Bucks County,
led by Tim/Connie McLaughlin w/Michael Chorazy’s help.
NEW
COVERED BRIDGE ITEMS: Gloria
Wolfhope found covered bridge birthday cards at
Ollie’s.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: August meeting minutes were approved with
one change reported by Steve Wolfhope to correct his service
as Vice President from 3 years to 6 years.
NEXT
MEETING: Sunday, October 17, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. at Manheim
Community Center (note the church is using the room until 1:30). Program will be “The Society’s Year in
Review” by Tom Walczak.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 2:50
p.m. No Program was scheduled for today.
Respectfully Submitted
by Pam Mailey, Recording Secretary, September 30, 2021