Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Bellows Falls (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Bellows Falls Canal, Bellows Falls Opera House, and Vilas Bridge. Also, be sure to include Arch Bridge in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Bellows Falls (New Hampshire).
Table of Contents
Bellows Falls Canal
Bellows Falls Canal is a canal constructed to allow boat traffic to bypass Great Falls on the Connecticut River in Bellows Falls, Vermont. It was constructed by the Bellows Falls Canal Company and was one of the first canals in the United States. It was used for transport, to power mills, and later for hydroelectric power. The Bellows Falls Downtown Historic District includes the canal.
The Library of Congress has a dry plate negative of the canal from 1907. A historical marker on Bridge Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont commemorates the canal's history.[1]
Address: 7 Square, Bellows Falls (Rockingham)
Bellows Falls Opera House
Building in Rockingham, Vermont. The Bellows Falls Times Building is a historic newspaper plant on Bridge and Island Streets in Bellows Falls, Vermont. The complex of three buildings was developed in the 1930s by the Vermont Newspaper Corporation, and served as home for the Bellows Falls Times newspaper until 1965, when it was consolidated with other local newspapers. The main building is a particularly fine local example of Colonial Revival design. The complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
The building complex is located on the west side of the island formed by the Connecticut River and the Bellows Falls Canal. The main building faces south toward Bridge Street, on the east side of the canal, with a warehouse to its north. A small wood frame former garage building stands east of the warehouse, fronting on Island Street.[2]
Address: 7 The Sq, 05101-1387 Bellows Falls (Rockingham)
Vilas Bridge
Bridge in Walpole, New Hampshire. The Charles N. Vilas Bridge is a 635-foot two-span concrete deck arch bridge over the Connecticut River between Bellows Falls, Vermont and North Walpole, New Hampshire. It was built in 1930 and has been closed since March 19, 2009.[3]
Arch Bridge
Through arch bridge in Walpole, New Hampshire. The Bellows Falls Arch Bridge was a three-hinged steel through arch bridge over the Connecticut River between Bellows Falls, Vermont and North Walpole, New Hampshire. It was structurally significant as the longest arch bridge in the United States when it was completed in 1905.
The bridge was built to circumvent an existing toll bridge and prevent people from using the Boston and Maine Railroad bridge, a practice the railroad preferred to discourage.[4]
Rockingham Free Public Library
Public library. Rockingham Free Public Library is one of four Carnegie Libraries in the state of Vermont. The building, in Bellows Falls, Vermont, a village of Rockingham, Vermont, was designed by Boston architects McLean & Wright in Classical Revival style. The Carnegie grant was offered in 1905. The town took a while to decide on allocating matching funds. The library officially opened on November 23, 1909. A children's annex was added to the building in 1929. In 2003 a new entryway and elevator were added for improved accessibility.[5]
Address: 65 Westminster St, Bellows Falls (Rockingham)
Robertson Paper Company Complex
Building in Rockingham, Vermont. The Robertson Paper Company Complex was a historic industrial facility on Island Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont. It consisted of a collection of mostly-interconnected factory and related buildings, built between c. 1890 and c. 1960 by various paper-related companies. It was occupied and enlarged by the Robertson Paper Company between 1907 and its failure in 1987, at which time it was the longest-lived paper company in the state. The complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. It was demolished in 2018-19 as a Brownfields Economic Revitalization Alliance project, with federal, state, and local funding.[6]
Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel
Chapel in Westminster, Vermont. The Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel is a historic chapel, located in the Oak Hill Cemetery off Pleasant Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Built about 1885, it is one of a small number of 19th-century cemetery chapels in the state, and is the most modestly decorated of those, with vernacular Gothic Revival elements. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.[7]
Gas Station at Bridge and Island Streets
Historical place in Rockingham, Vermont. The Gas Station at Bridge and Island Streets is a historic automotive service station in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Built about 1935, it is a modest yet well-preserved example of period roadside commercial architecture of the period. The Colonial Revival building continues to be used as a service facility; it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.[8]
Bellows Falls Co-operative Creamery Complex
Building in Rockingham, Vermont. The Bellows Falls Co-operative Creamery Complex is a historic industrial property in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Developed over a period of about 40 years beginning c. 1906, the complex, with two surviving buildings, it represents one of Vermont's largest commercial enterprises of the period. The property, located on the eastern side of Bellows Falls Island, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.[9]
Adams Gristmill Warehouse
The Adams Gristmill Warehouse is a historic industrial building on Bridge Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Built about 1925 by Frank Adams & Co. proprietors of the Adams Gristmill, it is a well-preserved example of a functional railroad-related industrial warehouse. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.[10]
William A. Hall House
The William A. Hall House is a historic house at 1 Hapgood Street in Bellows Falls, Vermont. Built in 1890-92, it is one of Vermont's finest early expressions of Colonial Revival architecture. It is notable for its first three residents, who all played prominent roles in the major businesses of Bellows Falls, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. It is now the Readmore Inn.[11]