The William H. Murray Bridge, better known as the iconic Pony Bridge along Route 66 near Bridgeport, Oklahoma, recently was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
The act became official Dec. 4, according to a weekly email from the National Park Service.
I had assumed the 3,990-foot span, which opened in 1934 over the South Canadian River, already had been on the National Register for years.
But Lynda Ozan, deputy state historic preservation officer for the Oklahoma Historical Society, wrote in an email the bridge previously was part of a National Register historic district concerning Route 66 in that region.
“NPS hired a consultant to prepare a nomination for just the bridge to be listed at the national level of significance,” Ozan wrote in a series of emails. “There are three levels of significance: local, state, national. … National level means it is significant to the nation as a whole. This is MUCH more challenging to prove and achieve. Short of becoming a National Historic Landmark, this is the highest designation the bridge can receive.”
The National Register nominating petition is here, which contains a lot of interesting historical tidbits about the bridge:
- “At the point of its construction, it was the most expensive and longest bridge in Oklahoma. When completed, it was the longest state-built bridge on U.S. Highway 66. Outside of its association with the highway, it is the longest and arguably best example of a Camelback pony truss bridge in the United States.”
- Designing the bridge presented a challenge because the unruly South Canadian River tended to change course abruptly, and quicksand in its wide floodplain precluded typical construction. Flash flooding had wiped out other bridges on the river.
- The only other bridge nearby was the suspension Key Bridge (now gone), a toll span near Geary that involved a circuitous route to get there.
- The Kansas City Bridge Co. did the construction work on the Murray Bridge and finished it two weeks ahead of schedule.
- “Excluding the municipally-owned structure over the Mississippi River near St. Louis, the highway commission considered it the largest bridge on Highway 66. In fact, it was the largest free bridge on the route from Illinois to California.”
- “Making a brief appearance in the movie The Grapes of Wrath (1940), the bridge remained the longest structure in Oklahoma until 1948, with the construction of the Roosevelt Bridge at Lake Texhoma. It remained the third longest bridge in the state through the 1950s.”
- “Considering major river crossings, the William H. Murray Bridge is the only example of a bridge built specifically for U.S. Highway 66 that remains in use.”
- The conclusion reads: “Given the above comparative analysis, the William H. Murray Bridge rises to a national level of significance as the most important major river crossing associated with U.S. Highway 66. It is also nationally significant as the best example of a long-span Camelback pony truss bridge, a short-lived hybrid truss form used predominantly in the 1930s to span principal waterways.
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced in September it gave the state of Oklahoma a $22 million grant to help rehabilitate and reconstruct the aging bridge, including keeping its distinctive 38 yellow trusses and parts of the original Route 66 pavement.
The work is scheduled to begin in early 2022.
Without the grant, the state probably would have built a new bridge around the span and closed the older bridge to traffic, leaving it to further decay in the elements.
(Images of the Pony Bridge near Bridgeport, Oklahoma, via the National Register of Historic Places nomination form)
Does this mean that the bridge is save and will not be changed in appearance? I thought the Horse Creek Bridge in Afton OK was also on the National Register, which proved not to be a big help in preservation.
Fred from The Netherlands
The bridge will be improved and widened, but its appearance will be preserved.
I recall travelling across similar bridges in New Zealand, where wide river beds with varying water courses needed spanning.
Having looked at the plans for the Pony Bridge, I just wonder how much of the present one will be left if the roadway is to be widened for “modern traffic”.
I sent an email to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, questioning, inter alia, the need what will effectively be a rebuilding of the bridge, and at a cost of $22 (or $28) million.
Scott Stegmann of the ODoT gave me answers to some of the questions I asked in an email, but failed to respond to my second email. Here is part of that second email:
“I am surprised that no data as to the origin and finish points of traffic using the bridge was recorded. Bearing in mind the proximity of Interstate 40 and the dual carriageway section of US 281 – and the very rural nature of the Bridgeport region, with (I imagine) very few journeys starting or ending in the immediate vicinity – a detour via these two modern fast roads would add only a few miles to any journey; and speeds along them would be higher. Were there any reasons for not retaining the current weight limit – and imposing a width limit – on the ‘Pony Bridge’ route, and introducing the detour?
“While work is needed to be carried out to ensure the longevity of the “Pony Bridge”, diverting heavy and wide vehicles to the adjacent Interstate 40 and dual carriageway US 281 would mean a large reduction on the $28 million rebuilding cost of the bridge, while retaining much more of its authenticity.
“I make these observations from having had a life-time’s involvement in transportation, and more recently in various road and rail heritage projects.”
Looking on Google Street View, I found the following:
Shortly after US 281 comes north from the junction with Interstate 40 there is a “WEIGHT LIMIT 9 TONS” sign. The pavement immediately changes to that of the old Route 66, with wide side strips for animal-drawn vehicles; a rare extant example of 1930s road building. Beyond a recently designed junction with Route 66, there is another “WEIGHT LIMIT 9 TONS” sign. And the side strips are largely grassed over, perhaps from lack of use.
But while the road has a 9 ton limit, the bridge has one of “15 TONS”.
Besides, from the second “WEIGHT LIMIT 9 TONS” sign to beyond the bridge, the carriageway remains the same width – that of the old Route 66. While the lack of traffic may be put down to either of the weight limits, the modern ‘alternative’ routes show equally light use. Hardly an indication of any need to widen and strengthen the bridge.
Yet the ODoT wants to “widen the travel lanes [of the bridge] to accommodate modern truck widths”. Then will come the widening of travel lanes all the way between the two US 281 junctions already mentioned. And the destruction of the “9 TON” limit old Route 66 pavement.
But where are these “modern trucks” needing to use this short cut along US 281 from Interstate 40? From Google Street View, there are none. None!
I’m pleased the bridge is now on the National Historic Register, but will it be only dressed up to ‘look’ historic?
During the reconstruction it will be closed. This will mean – according to the ODoT – “lengthy detours”. But the whole route using Interstate 40 and the dual carriageway section of US 281 would be an ELEVEN MILE journey – or SEVEN MILES longer than between the single carriageway start and finish points – on modern alignments at up to 70 mph. That is a “lengthy detour”? By the way, another section of Route 66 bypasses the bridge and links the single and dual carriageway parts of US 281 – reducing the detour considerably.
And what of the “Tower Bridge” on US-281 located just west of the US-281 Bridgeport Bridge? Why does it not need the same widening, etc that the Pony Bridge allegedly needs? From the ODoT: It “is currently not programmed for improvements in the ODOT 8-year Work Plan, ODOT Division 7 is in the process of developing a rehabilitation project for the Tower Bridge.”
A sledgehammer to crack a nut?
This is really good news! Route 66 is a huge asset to Oklahoma, and the state has been remiss in taking care of it. I understand that Route 66 changes over time — that’s the nature of things. But too much of it has begun to disappear altogether. A big “thank you” to whoever is responsible for this action.