Old stuff - bridges, barns & graveyards

Today we did some more fun exploring around New Hampshire. I love the history in this state! We first drove to a little town named Swanzey and found 5 covered bridges. I think the state has around 50 of them total.

This is the Carlton bridge. It was first built in 1789 and then rebuilt in 1869. It looks like it's been spruced up since then with a fresh coat of paint but talk about old!


This is the Cresson bridge. It looked pretty similar and was built in 1859.


The Thompson covered bridge had this marker in front of it saying it was originally constructed in 1832 and then reconstructed in 1993.


I liked the lattice work and walkway that made it unique:


I believe this bridge was called The Coombs. But it wasn't well marked and was much less travelled than the others we saw.


And finally, this is the Slate bridge. It was constructed just a few years ago in 2001 so it was very pretty and fresh.


Here's a side view--it was pretty long.


This sign warned those who crossed it:


The covered bridges were a lot of fun to see--not something you come across in Arizona.

On our drive we also came across this amazing abandoned barn. It is 3 stories tall and the roof is partially caved in. Many of the windows are broken out and the paint is peeling like crazy.





It was pretty amazing. I love old red barns and there's practically one around every turn in NH country. I think I'll do a photo study on them next time I'm here.

I'm also fascinated with really old graveyards. I know it might sound weird but it's really interesting to walk around them and look at the tombstones and wonder about people's lives back then. We came across this one on a hillside next to the road and it caught my interest right away. The tombstones were SO weathered and the leafless trees that surrounded them made for some striking images. My favorite is the one at the very top of this post.


Check out the intricacies and the weathered look of this marker:



Many of the tombstones were incredibly thin and some were difficult to read.


Others were very simple and clear. Many of the tombstones didn't have dates that people were born and the years that they died were largely in the 1800s.



This marker was very distressed and read: "Malachi W. son of Malachi & Tameson Richardson. Killed in battle at Cold Harbor, Va.. June 2, 1864. 21 yrs. 2 mos. & 22 dys."


Here were some beautiful markers of husbands and wives buried next to one another:


These two were born in the late 1700s:


And this was a very sad sight. Three tiny stones next to one another. All children of the same parents - two boys and one girl all born in the 1870s. One only lived to be 4 days old, one lived a year and another 3 years. Very sad. But a reminder of the infant mortality rate that existed not too long ago and what a difference modern medicine has made.


Even though sadness surrounds graveyards to some extent, I also find them very beautiful - a reminder of those who have gone before us and of the fact that our time here is short. As the old hymn says--"This world is not our home. We're just a passin' through..."