The McPhaul Suspension Bridge, sometimes known as

Yuma, Arizona Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 census, up from the 2000 census population of 77,515. Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, M ...

's ''Bridge to Nowhere'' is a

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

that used to carry a section of Arizona Route 95 (AZ SR 95, which later became US 95). The bridge is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. The bridge, which was named for local Yuma resident

Henry Harrison McPhaul Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

, was built over the

Gila River The Gila River (; O'odham ima Keli Akimel or simply Akimel, Quechan: Haa Siʼil, Maricopa language: Xiil) is a tributary of the Colorado River flowing through New Mexico and Arizona in the United States. The river drains an arid watershed of n ...

in 1929 and replaced in 1968 when it was deemed insufficient for modern transportation needs. At only 16 feet wide, the bridge was too narrow for a US numbered highway (in fact, even when built in 1929 it would have been too narrow, as the US highway system required two 9 foot lanes). A dam and replacement bridge were built and the river was rerouted. The bridge is long in total, with a deck width of 16 feet (4.9 m). Its main span is a Warren-type

pony truss A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or s ...

bridge suspended by cables from rocker type towers. The span is held by two steel cables in diameter and long. It has two approach spans, and long, and approach roadways and long. With

References

External links

{{National Register of Historic Places Suspension bridges Road bridges in Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Yuma County, Arizona Bridges completed in 1929 U.S. Route 95 Abandoned buildings and structures Former road bridges in the United States Bridges to nowhere

See also

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