Before me, a Justice of the Peace in and for the Borough of Columbia, County of Lancaster and the State of Pennsylvania, personally came John Q. Denney, who being by me [just or first] duly of [friend?] according to the law did declare and say as follows:” I was standing in Black’s Hotel on the afternoon of Sunday the 28th of June 1863, when W. Robert Crane came and asked me if I would go along with his party on to the Bridge that he [and] E.K. Smith had been appointed by Col. Jacob G. Frick, then commanding at Columbia, to cut the timbers of the Bridge, to bore and charge the arches with powder in order to have it in such condition as to blow it up or otherwise destroy it in case our forces stationed at Wrightsville should be attacked by the rebels and repulsed. I told him I certainly would do everything in my power that was considered [acceptable] by Col. Frick. I, with the others, went on to the bridge with W. Crane, tore up the planking on one of the spans near the West End, cut off all the timbers that we thought of would have been safe to cut without destroying the possibility of our troops to [hop] over, bored and charged the arches with powder ready for the match if [acceptable].

Jacob Rich, John Lockard, Jacob Miller and myself were appointed to take charge of the lighting of the fuses but a short time, when Col. Frick came and notified us that our forces would retreat and our only safety was to blow up the bridge. In a few minutes our soldiers retreated and [hopped] over the Bridge and the order was then given by Col. Frick to apply the matches was done. Each of us four, Jacob Rich, John Lockard, Jacob Miller and myself had charge of a fuse and we applied the matches when the order was given; but the explosion failing to blow up or destroy the Bridge as was expected we then under [express] order from Col. Frick set fire to the Bridge by building a fire in the middle of a span near the place where we had charged with powder. We then retreated while the rebels entered the West end of the Bridge and endeavored to extinguish the flames and the Bridge was entirely consumed.”

Signed:
John Q. Denney
Affirmed before me this 24th July 1863

David E. Brundy, Justice of the Peace
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania