Oregon Coastal River Bridges

This edition is a photographic survey of bridges spanning the major waterway rivers and creeks that dominate the western region of the state. Several of these distinctive crossings are premier examples of Modernist architecture design.

Most prominently featured in the edition are the works of internationally recognized bridge designer Conde McCullough. Author Marques Vickers’s essay on McCullough entitled “Scaling Above the Currents With Elegance” traces the trajectory of his life and professional career. McCullough is noteworthy for his completion of hundreds of design projects with twelve listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The most traveled of his bridges were completed between the 1919-1936, when he headed the bridge design division of the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Following a two-year sabbatical, where he worked designing bridges for the Pan American Highway in Central America, he abruptly retired completely from bridge design at the age of 49. Most of his classic Oregon projects are located along the Pacific Coast Highway. The bridge crossing Coos Bay, designed by his department, was renamed the Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge following his sudden death from a stroke in 1946 at the age of 58.

Vickers’ photography captures a stunning sculptural perspective and detail of each bridge from multiple angles. The steel and sometimes reinforced concrete compositions represent soaring aesthetic edifices often beautifully integrated into the topography and waterways that they cross.

The author’s own introduction to the coastal icons began in the winter of 2014. He cites their continued presence as reminders of a past when automobiles were first touring the unspoiled Oregon terrain. The largest city of Portland features numerous spans that form daily gateways into the urban center. Portland is often called nicknamed The Bridge City.

The bridges profiled and photographed in the edition include:

Alsea Bridge (Waldport)
Astoria-Megler Bridge (Astoria, Oregon and Megler, Washington)
Big Creek Bridge (Heceta Head)
Broadway Bridge (Portland)
Bullards Bridge (Bandon)
Cape Creek Bridge (Heceta)
Caveman Bridge (Grants Pass)
Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge (North Bend)
Fremont Bridge (Portland)
Hawthorne Bridge (Portland)
Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge (Gold Beach to Wedderbum)
Marquam Bridge (Portland)
Ross Island Bridge (Portland)
Schooner Creek Bridge (Lincoln City)
Spinreel Campground Overpass ()
Steel Bridge (Portland)
Ten Mile Creek Bridge (Yachats)
Tilikum Crossing (Portland)
Umpqua River Bridge (Reedsport)
Union Street Railroad Bridge (Salem)
Van Buren Street Bridge (Corvallis)
Yaquina Bay Bridge (Newport)