Area less than one acre NRHP Reference # 75001825 Added to NRHP 21 May 1975 | Built 1900 (1900) Opened 1900 | |
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Location In Dog Area on 2nd St. over Government Creek, Dugway Proving Ground, Utah Similar Lincoln Highway Hackens, Pulaski Skyway, Steel Pier, Lagoon, Jungle Habitat | ||
Lincoln Highway Bridge, also known as Government Creek Bridge, is located in southern Tooele County, Utah, on the United States Army’s Dugway Proving Ground facility. It once served an original proposed alignment of the Lincoln Highway, an historic transcontinental auto route. The bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Early history
According to one source, sometime around the turn of the twentieth century, a road was constructed across what is now Dugway Proving Ground. In 1915, the Lincoln Highway Association (LHA) identified a road for incorporation into the highway’s designated route between Salt Lake City, Utah and Ely, Nevada. Constructed by laborers from Utah State Prison, the bridge has been identified as being a component of an early proposed alignment of that route. Despite the LHA’s considerable lobbying, by 1922, Utah officials had abandoned the route in favor of a more northerly alignment via Wendover, Utah along the Wendover Cut-off. It is claimed to be "the only significant structure in this area that remains of the original proposed national highway."
Construction details
When the bridge was surveyed for consideration for the National Register of Historic Places, it was described as being constructed of "hewn logs and log supports." The survey notes abutments originally constructed of stone which were later reinforced by concrete as part of a Civilian Conservation Corps retrofit in the 1930s. The bridge measures 14.5 by 11.5 feet (4.4 m × 3.5 m) and was noted to be "in fairly good condition" upon completion of the survey in 1974.
National Register of Historic Places
The structure was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.