About
Leaman Place Covered Bridge, also known as Eshelman's Mill and the Paradise Bridge, carries Belmont Road over Pequea Creek on the line between Paradise and Leacock townships, half a mile north of US Route 30 and west of Paradise. It is 113 ft long with a 102 ft span and 15 ft wide. The county's official name is Pequea #4 Bridge. It is open to one lane of traffic.
History
James C. Carpenter built the first bridge here in 1845 for $933. Elias McMellan rebuilt it in 1893 for $2,431 (Dale Travis gives 1894), and the present structure dates from that rebuild. It was rehabilitated in 2004 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The land around it was settled in 1712 by the family of Mary Ferree under a William Penn land grant. Lancaster County owns and maintains the bridge.
Design
The bridge is a single span with double Burr arch trusses, timber arches combined with multiple kingpost trusses, and added steel hanger rods. The deck is oak plank, with 11 ft 6 in of overhead clearance. It is painted red inside and out, the traditional county color, and the approaches are white.
Visiting
The bridge is on Belmont Road half a mile north of Route 30. Vehicles can cross one at a time, and buggies use it regularly.
Sources: Wikipedia: Leaman Place Covered Bridge, Covered Bridges: Leaman's Place, Uncovering PA: Covered Bridges of Lancaster County
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