While this article doesn’t mention Bedford County, home to the best of the area’s covered bridges, it does mention those in Washington and Greene Counties, which are still quite nice.

From the Post-Gazette:

The slogan, “We’re No. 1,” isn’t just a sports chant. When it comes to covered bridges, it’s a fact.

Pennsylvania leads the country with 210 covered bridges — 70 more than second-place Ohio. There are 21 covered bridges in Washington County, all of them painted red. The hills of Greene County are dotted with seven covered bridges, some of them painted white and others in “natural” wood hues.

Ten of those historic bridges will be centerpiece attractions for craft displays, entertainment, children’s activities and food from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday during the 38th annual Washington/Greene Counties Covered Bridge Festival.

As many as 70,000 visitors have attended past festivals, according to officials with the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency and the Greene County Tourist Promotion Agency.

Special this year are festivities at two of the sites.

The White Bridge near Garards Fort, Greene County, and the Brownlee Bridge in Claysville, Washington County have been completely rebuilt.

In fact, the Brownlee Bridge has been moved to a new location. It used to be in West Finley.

Covered bridges are disappearing around the country, torn down because of old age and deterioration. Many were built between the 1820s and at the end of the 19th century. But county officials, private groups and individuals in Washington and Greene counties have worked hard to maintain, repair and rehabilitate their covered bridges.

Cheryl Clark grew up in North Dakota and had never seen a covered bridge until she married Richard Clark, whose family has lived since the 1950s near the White Bridge, which spans the Whitley Creek.

“To me, the bridge is fascinating. My husband grew up with the bridge. Kids fished off of it and swam around it,” Mrs. Clark said. “About 1997, a group of local people decided we wanted to do something for our area and we decided to have a yearly bridge festival. We love to have people come and see the bridge.”

The original bridge was built in 1900 or 1919, depending on which historical records are consulted.

As many as 6,000 people visit the White Bridge on festival day. “There are [automobile] license tags from all over the country,” Mrs. Clark said.

Admission and parking is free at the White Bridge and other festival sites. Food and crafts are sold. “We make about enough money to have a festival next year,” she said.

In February, workers began dismantling the bridge. Reconstruction went on all summer, with the finishing touches continuing right up to the opening of the festival.

“The weight limit had been 3 tons and it will be 10 tons when all the work is finished,” Mrs. Clark said. Some of the old side boards, which had to be replaced with new wood, have been saved and “crafters will use them to make things that will be sold at the festival.”

The bridge will be rededicated at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The White Bridge festival site will have local crafts, including wood, stone, candles, ceramics, jewelry and fabric. Demonstrations and exhibits including etched glass, antique tools, quilting, lace tatting, Lippencott alpacas and story telling. Civil war re-enactors will perform a mock battlefield surge. There will be horse-drawn wagon rides, live gospel music and home-cooked food from churches and fire departments.

The Brownlee Bridge in Washington County also has been torn down and rebuilt. Originally built sometime after 1865, it has also been moved to the McGuffey Community Park in Claysville.

“Work went on for more than a year. Many of the original parts are still there. Other parts had to be replaced,” said Dan Riggle, of Claysville, one of the residents involved in the festival. “This is our first year in the festival.”

The other Greene County bridge in the festival is the Carmichaels Bridge — about two blocks from the Carmichaels town square.

Other Washington County bridges in the 38th annual festival are the Ebenezer and the Henry bridges in Mingo Creek County Park; Hughes Bridge in Amwell Township Park; Wyit Sprowls Bridge in East Finley Township Park; Kreps Bridge in Mount Pleasant; Manover McClurg Bridge in Hanover Township Park; and Pine Bank Bridge at the Meadowcraft Rockshelter and Museum of Rural Life.

For festival information, visit www.washwow.com or www.co.greene.pa.us.

Also, the Washington County site contains covered bridge trivia such as this item: Washington County covered bridges are red because the original paint formulas include red oxides from the local soil.