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LIFESPAN
OF A SPANSmithville’s
(2nd) Colorado River Bridge
1915-1950Photos
and Captions Courtesy of the Smithville Historical Society
From Arcadia Publishing's
Images of America Series: Smithville, Texas |
Ay,
tear her iron girders down!
Long have they spanned the river,
Generations
have picnicked beneath her shade
And heard her shake and quiver.
She
served Smithville for nearly
two score years,
Over waters warm and frigid,
We can only hope that
her concrete niece
Will prove to be as rigid. (With
apologies to Oliver Wendell Holmes) |
| This March 16, 1915,
bridge construction photograph exhibits the latest in bridge-building technique.
This replacement for the [first
Colorado River Bridge c. 1900] destroyed in the 1913 flood carefully cantilevers
across the Colorado River, spanning north from the town side. A similar segment
of the bridge approaches from the opposite riverbank to ultimately link at mid-span. |
Civilians
Cross the Colorado River on the Army's Pontoon Bridge
The
damaged bridge is visible in the upper right hand corner. |
| “In the mid 1940s,
having survived the 1935 flood, the river bridge was forced to be temporarily
closed as a result of a structural impairment caused by a military bulldozer being
transported across it. Since there was no other bridge between La
Grange and Bastrop, the Army Corps
of Engineers quickly assembled a floating pontoon bridge just upstream to handle
the vehicular traffic. Townsfolk held picnics and watched the construction from
the riverbank.” |
| Impeccable
timing: The Colorado River Bridge at the moment of demolition |
| “By September 8, 1950,
the 1915 Colorado River overhead box girder bridge had fulfilled its intended
purpose. Capturing another moment of the city’s history, Fred Moree, Smithville’s
noted photographer, caught the center span of the bridge in a midair free fall
after demolition charges were detonated to bring down the obsolete and damaged
structure.” | |
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