This Nearly 100-Year-Old Maine Bridge Is the Only One of Its Kind in the World

If you had to think about some incredible bridges in Maine, one of your first thoughts would likely be the memorable Piscataqua River Bridge that connects to New Hampshire.

It tends to give Mainers that emotional "welcome home" feeling.

Or maybe you thought of the smallest suspension bridge in the world. A cute little walk in the Pine Tree State.

But there's one bridge that stands out as the only one of its kind in not just Maine but the whole world: a granite cribstone bridge found in Harpswell.

When Was the Cribstone Bridge in Harpswell, Maine, Built?

Located in Harpswell, Maine, the Bailey Island Bridge, also known as the Cribstone Bridge, was completed in 1928 and connects Orr's Island and Bailey's Island, according to the town of Harpswell's website.

The Maine Department of Transportation noted that the area's tides posed a central problem in how to design the bridge as it needed to withstand the wind and the waves while also not messing with the flow of the current.

Who Designed the Cribstone Bridge in Harpswell, Maine?

Llewelyn Edwards, a bridge engineer with the Maine State Highway Commission, helped come up with the unique design, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers, and granite slabs were brought in and placed in a cribbing pattern. That's why it looks like there are holes in the bridge when you look at it.

And, of course, the concrete roadway was placed on top. You may have driven over the bridge before.

You can see pictures of the bridge construction from this Facebook post from We the people of Brunswick/Topsham Maine below.

The ASCE stated that the project took two years to complete and cost $139,000.

According to The Harpswell Maine Business Association, about 10,000 tons of granite were used for the 1,150-foot bridge.

You can even check out a great 2022 drone video of the unique bridge on YouTube below.

Thankfully, the bridge is still around today, but it has been battered and worn down over the years and has required some updates to keep it usable.

Maine Preservation reported that in the early 2000s, officials noted that major repairs needed to happen as the "cribstone structure had missing stones, shifted stones, cantilevered stones and fractured stones, all of which all needed attention during the rehabilitation."

The rehab project was finished in 2011, according to Maine Preservation, and the MaineDOT worked to keep the historic landmark as close to its original look, even down to the replacement granite stones.

And if you're wondering about the spat of storms more recently? The Harpswell Anchor reported in January 2024 that even though some damage was done to the Cribstone Bridge like a few mislodged granite stones, "officials said the bridge mostly held up and remained safe to travel on."

This bridge isn't going anywhere!

How remarkable is this bridge? It's incredible to think that it's nearly 100 years on and still going strong.

If you haven't seen this unique landmark (or been to this beautiful part of the state), it should definitely be on your Maine bucket list. Road trip time.