A research investigation of single bolt lap-plate connection load-deformation behavior is presented. Each important characteristic of this behavior is evaluated and two methods for analytically approximating the behavior are developed and presented. The first of these methods is a component method in which the behavior of the connection is modeled as a combination of the behavior of the parts. The second method utilizes a number of parametric relationships that relate the connection parameters to coefficients of two non-linear continuous analytical curves. The test results from four independent experimental programs that investigated the behavior of single bolt lap-plate connections are used in the development and verification of these methods.