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AKA: Burlington Northern Railroad Bridge 9.6, Columbia River, WA; Columbia River Railroad Bridge, Columbia River, WA
Structure Type: built works - infrastructure - transportation structures - bridges
Designers: Ralph Modjeski (civil engineer)
Dates: constructed 1906-1908
1 story
Construction of this 2,807-foot, 9-pier bridge spanning the Columbia River began on 02/08/1906 and concluded on 07/24/1908, accommodating James J. Hill's Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway (SP&S). It was one of three bridges planned by the new SP&S line to connect Portland, OR, and Seattle, WA--the Columbia River Bridge, Oregon Slough Bridge and Willamette Drawbridge. All were planned by the Polish-born civil engineer Ralph Modjeski (1861-1940). The first train crossed the bridge on 10/23/1908. The bridge had a swinging mechanism to allow sailing vessels to pass through and had a Pratt truss structural system, patented by the Boston-born civil engineer Thomas Willis Pratt (1812-1875) and his "housewright" father, Caleb (possibly 1784-1859), in 1844. The Pratt truss would remain a popular structural system over the years, (particularly for railroad bridges) transitioning easily from wood-and-iron, all-iron, and all-steel construction.
PCAD id: 18922
