Skip to main content

Siuslaw River Bridge - US 101 in Florence, Oregon

 


As the Oregon Coast Highway (US 101) was being completed across the State of Oregon during the 1930s, a number of bridges needed to be built to cross some of the state's finest rivers. In Florence, Oregon, the Siuslaw River Bridge was designed and constructed to help fill in the gaps between different coastal communities. Built in 1936, the Siuslaw River Bridge is a bascule bridge flanked by two reinforced concrete arches that spans across the Siuslaw River. The bridge and the river get their names from the Siuslaw tribal people who make their home along the river valleys of this part of the Oregon Coast. Today, the bridge provides a vital link connecting US 101 and the Central Oregon Coast to points north and south.

The total length of the Siuslaw River Bridge is 1,568 feet, stretching across the river. But more specifically, the bridge is made up of a north approach with eight spans of reinforced concrete deck girder totaling 478 feet in length. There is a main span in three parts, which includes a 140 foot long double leaf Chicago style bascule lift with single 154 foot reinforced concrete tied arch at each end of the bascule lift. Finally, there is a south approach with twelve spans of reinforced concrete deck girder totaling 646 feet in length. Staying true to the artistic touches that bridge engineer Conde McCullough liked to include in his bridge designs, there are four Art Deco style obelisks that house mechanical equipment as well as quarters and office space for the bridge operator were also included in the Siuslaw River Bridge's construction.

Designed by Oregon's State Bridge Engineer Conde B. McCullough, the Siuslaw River Bridge was built by the Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka, California, and funded by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works (which was later renamed the Public Works Administration). With the New Deal programs that came about during the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal Programs, such as the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the Public Works Administration (PWA), this helped to provide some of the jobs and lend some of the money construction so that the final gaps along the Oregon Coast Highway could be closed. With the funds secured, McCullough had the responsibility of designing, supervising, and finishing the construction of the five major bridges that were to span major bodies of water along the coast, including the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport and the Siuslaw River Bridge. With the inclusion of the funds provided for the Siuslaw River Bridge, the total cost of the bridge was $527,000.

The Siuslaw River Bridge can be enjoyed and seen from a number of vantage points along the Siuslaw River in Florence. For instance, there is a nice viewpoint of the bridge at the Siuslaw Interpretive Center, which is a small park just east of the bridge. In conclusion, the bridge is one of the many treasures you can discover during a trip along the Oregon Coast.

One of the reinforced concrete arches of the Siuslaw River Bridge as well

The reinforced arches and bascule section of the bridge.

Driving north along the bridge. You can see the intricate details of the bridge's obelisks.

Driving south along the bridge. More obelisks, more arches.
An older picture I took during a restoration project on the Siuslaw River Bridge in 2009.


How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
The Living New Deal - Siuslaw River Bridge - Florence, Oregon
Oregon Digital - Siuslaw River Bridge (Florence, Oregon)
Lynn and Judy's Bridge Walking Blog - Siuslaw River Bridge
HistoricBridges.org - Siuslaw River Bridge
Bridgehunter.com - Siuslaw River Bridge
Library of Congress - Siuslaw River Bridge, Spanning Siuslaw River at Oregon Coast Highway, Florence, Lane County, OR

Comments

I would like to say this is a well-informed article as we have seen here. Your way of writing is very impressive and also it is a beneficial article for us. Thanks for sharing an article like this.Oregon Coast Coos Bay

Popular posts from this blog

The 1915-era Teilman Bridge (the only known Concrete Pony Truss Bridge in California)

The Teilman Bridge is a semi-abandoned structure over Fresno Slough west of Burrell siding near the intersection of Elkhorn Avenue and Elkhorn Grade.  This structure is the only known Concrete Pony Truss Bridge constructed in California and was designed by Ingvart Teilman.  Teilman's Bridge would open in late 1915 when the Elkhorn Grade was the primary road between Fresno and Coalinga.  The structure would be replaced in 1991 but was left standing as it carries pipelines over Fresno Slough.  Part 1; the history of the Teilman Bridge In the early Twentieth Century the most direct highway between Fresno and Coalinga followed the Elkhorn Grade.  The Elkhorn Grade began at Fresno Slough a short distance west of Burrell siding.  From Fresno Slough the Elkhorn Grade followed a generally southwestern course through San Joaquin Valley into the Kettleman Hills towards Coalinga.   The Elkhorn Grade can be seen on the  1914 C.F. Weber map of Fresno Coun...

The Dummy Lights of New York

  A relic of the early days of motoring, dummy lights were traffic lights  that  were  placed  in the middle of a street intersection. In those early days, traffic shuffled through busy intersections with the help of a police officer who stood on top of a pedestal. As technology improved and electric traffic signals became commonplace, they were also  originally  positioned on a platform at the center of the intersection. Those traffic signals became known as  " dummy lights "  and were common until  traffic lights were moved  onto wires and poles that crossed above the intersection.  In New York State, only a handful of these dummy lights exist. The dummy lights  are found  in the Hudson Valley towns of Beacon and Croton-on-Hudson, plus there is an ongoing tug of war in Canajoharie in the Mohawk Valley, where their dummy light has been knocked down and replaced a few times. The dummy light in Canajoharie is currently...

Prunedale Road (Monterey County)

Prunedale Road is a short 2.6-mile-long frontage corridor of US Route 101 in the namesake Monterey County community of Prunedale.  Prior to 1932 US Route 101 bypassed Prunedale in favor of the San Juan Grade to the east.  Prunedale Road along with nearby Moro Road served as an alternative connecting highway between Salinas and San Juan Bautista.  Following the realignment of US Route 101 onto the Prunedale Cutoff the former through route along Prunedale Road would be rendered as a western frontage.   Part 1; the history of Prunedale Road Prunedale Road is located in and is named after the Monterey County community of Prunedale.  Said community was founded near the junction of San Migeul Canyon, Langley Canyon and Echo Valley.  Watsonville settler Charles Langley (namesake of Langley Canyon) was one of the prominent early community settlers.  The Prunedale Post Office would open for the first time in 1894 but would close by 1908.  Early agricu...