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Dozens of classic cars line the banks of the Boise River in Eagle, but why?

For almost 70 years, classic cars have lined part of the Boise River in Eagle.

EAGLE, Idaho — Have you seen them the nearly two dozen classic cars line the banks of the Boise River in Eagle, just west of Eagle Road?

Many have seen them, but fewer know why they're there.

Alana Dunn, the curator at the Eagle Museum of History, says the cars were put there in the 1950s as an experiment used in erosion control.

"They noticed that the banks of the river were being eaten away and they thought that the best thing that they could do is put something very large, heavy... and cars were readily available in the junkyard," Dunn said.

The cars were taken apart and their shells were put headfirst into the riverbank

"They worked really well, they just weren't environmentally friendly," she said.

Dunn says there's never been any talk about removing them.

"They are such a part of the bank now. Trees grow through them, the bank has grown around them," she explained. "To remove the automobiles would destroy the bank and destroy the purpose of the erosion control." 

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