Horsetail Falls Bridge
Route 2
Built: 1914
Our historic image of the day is a penny postcard circa 1920 which shows Horsetail Falls along the Historic Columbia River Highway (HCRH). The caption on the back reads: “Horsetail Falls. A fine view of this beautiful water fall is obtained from the Columbia River Highway. The Horsetail Falls are 208 feet high. This picture shows the Cathedral Domes beyond.” Have any of you been to Horsetail Falls? If not, it is a beautiful place to stop along the HCRH so check it out on your next trip through the Columbia River Gorge. We hope you all enjoy today’s post and have a wonderful holiday weekend! =) Austin
Horsetail Falls Bridge is a three-span 60-foot reinforced-concrete deck girder trestle, consisting of three 20-foot slabs, which is 24 feet wide and 80 feet in length. The curb and guardrail form an integral unit, cantilevered out from the girder. This span is very similar to the 1914 Oneonta Gorge Bridge. Just to the south and visible from the bridge is Horsetail Falls.
"Horsetail Falls is one of the many falls in the Columbia River Gorge which can be seen off the Historic Columbia River Highway. The falls, located on Horsetail Creek, is a classic example of a horsetail formation. Horsetail Falls is 176 feet tall and 20 feet wide, and can be viewed from a turnout on the Historic Columbia River Highway 2 1/2 miles east of Multnomah Falls. Upstream of Horsetail Falls is Ainsworth State Park and downstream is Oneonta Tunnel and Gorge. The name "Horsetail Falls" has been used since Pioneer days.”(1)
(1) Topinka, Horsetail Falls
Post by Oregon State Archives on December 24, 2015https://www.facebook.com/OregonStateArchives/photos/a.332597276807385/999319536801819
"The stream is crossed below Horsetail Falls by a reinforced concrete girder bridge 60 feet in length at an elevation of 44 feet."
Lancaster, 1914 66
Robert W. Hadlow, Columbia River Highway Historic District, National Historic Landmark Nomination
CS17. Structure: Horsetail Falls Bridge, No. 4543 HAER No. OR-36-M
Location: HMP 34.6
Date: 1914
Designer: K. P. Billner, Oregon State Highway Dept.
Builder: The Construction Company, Portland
Owner: Oregon Department of Transportation
This three-span 60-foot reinforced-concrete deck girder trestle is 24 feet wide and has a roadway measuring 22 feet. The curb and guardrail form an integral unit, cantilevered out from the girder. The delicate arched railing panels were constructed from plaster concrete and metal lath. They are identical to those found on the Oneonta Gorge Creek Bridge (1914) and the Multnomah Falls viaducts and represent one of the family of railing designs found on the CRH.
Hadlow, Landmark Nomination, 20
