Hooper Covered Bridge

A covered bridge stood over Western Run at the intersection of Pimlico Road and Greenspring Avenue. In 1897 this area was still a part of Baltimore County. An article appeared in the Northwest Star on June 22, 1972 providing information about the location of the bridge and owner of the property. Segments of the article are shown below:

Can you believe that this picture--with the lovely covered bridge and winding trolley tracks--was at the intersection of Pimlico Road and Greenspring Avenue? This was the way that busy intersection looked in the year 1897 when Mr. Robert Holloway Hooper owned most of the land surrounding it. Mr. Hooper had purchased 85 acres of dense woodland, much of which followed Western Run, the stream over which this bridge was built.

There was no Cross Country Boulevard when this picture was taken. Indeed, even Park Heights Avenue had not been cut all the way through. The only transportation to the city was by means of the trolley, part of the Baltimore Northern Railroad that ran all the way from downtown Baltimore to Emory Grove.

The covered bridge was longer than the present concrete one across Western Run. It was a fairly short bridge as plenty of daylight showed through when you went through the covered section. Light also came in from the small windows that were cut out near the roofline.

Cross Country Boulevard was cut through in about 1910. What is today called Western Run Drive was originally known as Tanbark Drive and was intended only for horseback riding. These two designed roads were on either side of a park of which 4 or 4-1/2 miles is still there and presently owned by the City of Baltimore. But in the early days, this property was all county owned. The city did not stretch out to its present boundaries until much later.

When Robert Holloway Hooper purchased his acreage, he called it Labyrinth because the entire area was so wild. Mr. Hooper rode on horseback to his office on Lexington Street. During the winter, it was not unusual for the Hooper family to be snowbound out in the country. During the blizzard of 1888, Mr. Hooper had to walk home from his office--a walk of seven miles in the worst blizzard Baltimore had ever known.

In the days of jet planes and power machines, it is hard to imagine the peace and quiet that must have been at the site of the covered bridge. Only when the trolley made its run was the country quiet broken. This was the only distraction for the grazing cows in the meadow. The covered bridge has been supplanted by a modern concrete open bridge. Fortunately for us, the picture has survived as a memory of Baltimore many years ago.

Although difficult to see, at the left is the photo of the Hooper Covered Bridge over Western Run that the Northwest Star referred to in the article above.

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