BOISE, Idaho —
The capital boulevard memorial bridge was built in 1931 and was intended to be the final piece of the grand entrance into the capital city.
It was also called the Oregon Trail Memorial Bridge when it was first built as a tribute to the pioneers who made their way through Boise and apparently crossed the river at this point.
However, the account of its construction was a pretty good one. There was a plan, there was a denial of that plan, then there was a kick in of some federal cash, and then the job got done in record time.
The idea was to build Boise’s Grand Boulevard, a park-like approach to the state capitol, for visitors dropped off at the train depot. But to build it, they would need a bridge.
However, when they brought a construction bond to Boise voters in 1927, they said no.
Getting the U.S Bureau of public roads involved gave them the green light, which set the local engineering firm, Morrison Knudsen, in motion.
The firm took Charles Kyles’ art deco design and hired 100 men to make it happen.
Starting with the first pour of concrete on February 20, 1931, those men worked 16-hour days every day. According to the Idaho Statesman, they finished the arches by April 18, the floor eleven days later, just 68 after they started.
In May of that year, just before it was opened to traffic, the Idaho Statesman wrote, “six months ago, a dream, today, a completed structure.”
All that was left, were the handrails, the artwork, and a general polishing to be put on it, and the Oregon Trail Memorial Bridge was done, sixty days ahead of schedule.
The 4-lane capitol boulevard memorial bridge is 310 feet long and has not changed much over the years, other than the deck being redone in 1987 and the whole bridge getting a makeover in 2013 for the city's sesquicentennial celebration.
It was also added to the national register of historic places in 1990.
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