The Yale Bridge or Lewis River Bridge spans the Lewis River near Yale, Washington. It was built in 1932 by

Cowlitz Cowlitz may refer to: People * Cowlitz people, an indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest ** Cowlitz language, member of the Tsamosan branch of the Coast Salish family of Salishan languages * Cowlitz Indian Tribe, a federally recognized tribe of ...

and

Clark Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educate ...

counties. The

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 ...

has a

clear span Span is the distance between two intermediate supports for a structure, e.g. a beam (structure), beam or a bridge. A span can be closed by a solid beam or by a rope. The first kind is used for bridges, the second one for power lines, overhead telec ...

of , with a total length of , replacing a previous steel truss bridge at the site. Construction of the Ariel Dam had created

Lake Merwin Lake Merwin is a reservoir on the Lewis River in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies on the border between Clark County and Cowlitz County. It was created in 1931 with the construction of Merwin Dam. See also *List of lakes in Washington (sta ...

with a water depth of at the site, requiring a new bridge that did not need to have support piers in the water. The road deck, stiffened by a steel Warren truss, is above the high water line of the reservoir. The bridge was designed by Harold H. Gilbert of the Washington State Highway Department, and was constructed by the Gilpin Construction Company of Portland, Oregon. The only short-span steel suspension bridge in Washington, the bridge incorporates unique features. Only the central span is slung from the cables, with separate unloaded cables acting as backstays running from the tall towers to concrete anchorages in the canyon's rocky sides. The approach spans were originally supported from below by a timber structure. The cables are discontinuous at the towers, unlike most suspension bridges, in which the cables run over a saddle on the towers. With less wear, the cables could be smaller. The bridge deck is made of timbers with an asphalt overlay. The counties transferred the bridge to the Washington State Department of Highways in the late 1930s and it was refitted in 1957–58 with steel approach spans. It is noted for prominent brackets supporting osprey nests. The bridge was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 16, 1982.

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Yale Bridge
at Clark County, Washington {{Authority control Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state) Bridges completed in 1932 Suspension bridges in Washington (state) Transportation buildings and structures in Cowlitz County, Washington Bridges in Clark County, Washington National Register of Historic Places in Clark County, Washington National Register of Historic Places in Cowlitz County, Washington Steel bridges in the United States