New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

10/10/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/10/2025 09:29

New York State Parks Announces Celebration for America's Oldest Covered Bridge

Glimmerglass State Park's Hyde Hall covered bridge celebrates 200 years on Saturday


A variety of events and activities offered to visitors from around the country to
'Get Offline and Get Outside'

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (State Parks) today announced that America's oldest covered bridge, the Hyde Hall bridge in New York's Glimmerglass State Park, will celebrate 200 years of existence with a grand celebration on Saturday, October 11. Visitors from around the country are expected to attend Saturday's celebration taking place from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM in Cooperstown.

Family-friendly events and activities during the celebration will include music from old-time music specialists and students at Cooperstown High School, a classic car show, children's activities including face painting, horse and buggy rides, remarks marking the 1825 bridge, and special presentations about the history of wooden covered bridges and the general Cooperstown area. A souvenir booklet about the Hyde Hall bridge will be available, and food and drink will be on sale at various food trucks.

"New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is thrilled that visitors from across the state and country continue to discover Hyde Hall State Historic Site's remarkable 200-year-old covered bridge-the oldest in the United States," saidNew York State Parks Acting Commissioner Kathy Moser. "Once the grand entrance to the Clarke family estate, the bridge now welcomes the public to explore and enjoy Glimmerglass State Park year-round, whether for a summer swim, a fall hike, or a peaceful winter snowshoe. Congratulations to our dedicated staff and many partners on this historic milestone!"

Hyde Hall bridge, 53-feet long and with unusual horizontal siding, was built to give access to the Hyde Hall estate of George Clarke. Some of the notable visitors who crossed the bridge to visit Hyde Hall Estate include Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, Samuel F.B. Morse, and Juliette Gordon Low.

Approximately 14,000 covered bridges have been built in America since the first one over the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia in 1805 (destroyed by fire in 1850). Many bridges were removed because they exceeded their useful life, while others were replaced because of the demands of modern traffic. Today, with determined preservation work during the past 75 years, about 650 historic covered bridges remain. The Hyde Hall bridge is the first in the United States to turn 200 years old.

Glimmerglass State Park and the Hyde Hall State Historic Site, along with the New York State Covered Bridge Society, the Theodore Burr Covered Bridge Resource Center, the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, and other organizations devoted to the history and preservation of covered bridges, are hosting the festivities.

Camping sites can be reserved through the park. The rain date for the celebration is Sunday, October 12.

Hyde Hall, Inc. Executive Director Jonathan Maney said, "Hyde Hall's Covered Bridge is an enduring testament to the high quality of engineering that helped build the Empire State. We're incredibly fortunate to have such a beautifully preserved example, now the oldest surviving covered bridge in America."

Cooperstown Mayor Ellen Tillapaugh said, "The beauty and history of Otsego Lake and the historic properties which surround it, provide a vibrant illustration of our nation's heritage. We are fortunate that Hyde Hall and Glimmerglass State Park have ensured the preservation of this Covered Bridge for the enjoyment of future generations."

Glimmerglass State Park, located eight miles outside the village of Cooperstown, overlooks Otsego Lake, the "Glimmerglass" of James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales. The rolling, partially wooded terrain is host to a wide variety of wildlife, and the park offers hiking, biking, camping, an accessible kayak launch, fishing and playgrounds. An uphill trail through the forest affords a spectacular view of Otsego Lake; the Beaver Pond and Woodland trails are picturesque and of interest for the variety of wildflowers, shrubs, ferns and mosses. The Hyde Hall Mansion, covered bridge, and a self-guided Beaver Pond Nature Trail are within park boundaries and open to visitors.

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees more than 250 parks, historic sites, recreational trails, golf courses, boat launches and more, and welcomes over 88 million visitors annually. For more information on any of these recreation areas, visit parks.ny.gov, download the free NY State Parks Explorer app or call 518.474.0456. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, the OPRHP Blog or via the OPRHP Newsroom.

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation published this content on October 10, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 10, 2025 at 15:29 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]