This 65 foot span over Valley Creek in Valley Forge Historic Park, Malvern, PA, was first built in 1851, but flood, fire and 21st Century traffic has required rebuilding on several occasions. At only 10' wide, attention to driving is demanded as it is easy to pinball off the side burr truss, taking part of the white pine structure with you.
As was so often the case in the 18th-19th Centuries, these flowing streams were often dammed and used to power mills for flour needed for survival. Those early pre-industrial buildings are gone but for a few stone foundations visible with a little close looking along the creek edge. Walking along the trail that follows the watercourse all you can hear is the creek's exuberant laughter as it scours the rocky bottom as it has for a few thousand years.
Who is the bridge named for? Some historians say it is for Philander Knox who bought a farm nearby at the turn of the 20th Century. He served as a two term U. S. Senator from Pennsylvania, and before that Secretary of State in the Taft administration, and Attorney General for Theodore Roosevelt.
Others say the proper Knox was Henry, a general during the Revolution who camped near here during the dark days of our War of Independence when we were losing to the British and the Redcoats occupied Philadelphia. He was also President Washington's first Secretary of War.
Both had impressive credentials.
Either way, it is a beautiful spot to visit on a humid weekend afternoon before afternoon thunderstorms force you to seek shelter. read more