The Hawthorne Bridge is a

truss bridge 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 ...

with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical-lift bridge in operation in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and the oldest highway bridge in Portland. It is also the busiest bicycle and transit bridge in

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

, with over 8,000 cyclists and 800

TriMet TriMet, formally known as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon, is a public agency that operates mass transit in a region that spans most of the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Created in 1969 ...

buses (carrying about 17,400 riders) daily. It was added to 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 ...

in November 2012.

Statistics

The bridge consists of five fixed spans and one vertical-lift span. It is in total length. The bridge was originally wide, including two five-foot sidewalks, but the sidewalks were widened to 10 feet in 1998, increasing the structure's overall width to . The counterweights are suspended from the two towers. It is operated by a pair of 150-horsepower motors. On average, the lift span is raised for river traffic 120 times per month. While the river is at low level, the bridge is above the water, causing it to be raised an average of 200 times per month. As of 2001, the average daily traffic was 30,500 vehicles. The bridge was designed by

Waddell & Harrington Waddell & Harrington was an American engineering company that designed bridges from 1907 to 1915. It was formed in 1907 as a partnership of John Alexander Low Waddell (1854–1938) and John Lyle Harrington (1868–1942) and was based in Kansas C ...

, which also designed the Steel and

Interstate The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

bridges.

John Alexander Low Waddell Dr. John Alexander Low Waddell (January 15, 1854 – March 3, 1938, often shortened to J.A.L. Waddell and sometimes known as John Alexander Waddell) was a Canadian-American civil engineer and prolific bridge designer, with more than a thousa ...

invented the modern-day vertical-lift bridge.

History

The current bridge was built to replace the second

Madison Street Bridge Madison Street Bridge may refer to: *Madison Street Bridge (Chicago), a crossing of the Chicago River *Madison Street Bridge (Portland, Oregon), the name of two former bridges over the Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributa ...

, a wooden bridge built in 1900. It cost $511,000 to build and was opened on December 19, 1910. Hawthorne Boulevard (and thus the bridge) was named after Dr. J.C. Hawthorne, the cofounder of Oregon's first mental hospital and early proponent for the first

Morrison Bridge The Morrison Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. Completed in 1958, it is the third bridge at approximately the same site to carry that name. It is one of the most heavily used bridges in Portland. It ...

. The

streetcar A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport a ...

tracks across the bridge were originally in the outer lanes, but were relocated to the center lanes in 1931. The deck was changed from wood to steel grating in 1945.

In 1985 the lift span sheaves, the grooved wheels that guide the counterweight cables, were replaced. The bridge went through a $21 million renovation from 1998 to 1999, which included replacing the steel grated deck and repainting. The original

lead-based paint Lead paint or lead-based paint is paint containing lead. As pigment, lead(II) chromate (, "chrome yellow"), lead(II,IV) oxide, (, "red lead"), and lead(II) carbonate (, "white lead") are the most common forms.. Lead is added to paint to acceler ...

was completely removed and replaced with 3 layers of new paint that is estimated to last 30 years. During this upgrade the sidewalks were widened to , making it a thoroughfare for bicycle commuters. Due to the replacement of the steel deck during this project, the channels which used to carry the rails for streetcars and interurban trains were also removed. The bridge was closed for one year to permit the renovation to be carried out. The original color of the bridge was black, lasting until 1964, when it was repainted yellow ochre. During the 1998–99 renovation, the color was changed to green with red trim. In 2001, the sidewalks were connected to the Eastbank Esplanade. In 2005, the estimated cost to replace the bridge was $189.3 million. The 2003 film, '' The Hunted'', included a scene set on MAX on the Hawthorne Bridge. Since MAX does not cross the bridge, the movie company connected two articulated buses remodeled to resemble a MAX train, complete with fake overhead lines and a sprinkler system to simulate rain. Light-rail ( interurban) service did cross the Hawthorne Bridge until 1956. The new deck put in place in the outer lanes during the 1998–99 renovation was designed to be strong enough for possible use by modern, heavier

s or light rail trains in the future,Stewart, Bill (July 31, 1997). "Streetcars will return to Portland/City will strengthen, repaint Hawthorne Bridge". ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 18 ...

'', p. D1. which was proposed at that time, and

was still considering a Hawthorne Bridge routing for its future

MAX Orange Line The MAX Orange Line is a light rail service in Portland, Oregon, United States, operated by TriMet as part of the MAX Light Rail system. It connects Portland City Center, Portland State University (PSU), Southeast Portland, Milwaukie, and ...

, to Milwaukie, in 2002. However, following the transit agency's later decision to build the

Tilikum Crossing Tilikum Crossing, Bridge of the People is a cable-stayed bridge across the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was designed by TriMet, the Portland metropolitan area's regional transit authority, for its MAX Orange Line lig ...

for the Milwaukie MAX line, which bridge could also be used by the

Portland Streetcar The Portland Streetcar is a streetcar system in Portland, Oregon, that opened in 2001 and serves areas surrounding downtown Portland. The NS Line runs from Northwest Portland to the South Waterfront via Downtown and the Pearl District. The Lo ...

, it became unlikely that rail cars will ever again cross the Hawthorne Bridge. The bridge was added to the

in November 2012.

Bicycle counter

In August 2012, an automated real-time bicycle counter was installed on the bridge, the first such counter to be installed in a U.S. city. It was purchased by the non-profit group Cycle Oregon for $20,000 and donated to the city. The city paid $5,000 for its installation. The millionth rider was counted in July 2013. It is currently broken and has not recorded data since 2018.

Pop culture references

* Elliott Smith mentions the Hawthorne Bridge in the song "I Can't Answer You Anymore." * Portland composer, Jack Gabel, sampled tire whines and engine drones of vehicles crossing the bridge to make the musique concrète sound track for his 1987 Artquake/Bumbershoot installation, in collaboration with kinetic artist Bill Will and video artist Kurt Spak, titled AUTO-TOMY * The Hawthorne Bridge is mentioned in House Of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski at bottom of p. 508 during one of Johnny Truant's late journal entries. "Portland. Dusk. Walked under the Hawthorne bridge and sat by the Willamette River."

Gallery

File:HawthorneBridge-Pano.jpg, Panoramic view from the southeast File:Portland panorama3.jpg, From the Eastbank Esplanade File:Hawthorne Bridge West.jpg, Seen from the west File:Cyclists waiting on Hawthorne Bridge during a lift.jpg, Cyclists waiting during a bridge lift File:Hawthorne Bridge from the southwest with lift span raised slightly.jpg, Lift span being raised File:Hawthorne Br. west end 2012 with drawbridge sign and other traffic signs.jpg, Sidewalk view from the west in 2012 File:HawthorneBridgeAtNight.jpg, The bridge at night File:Hawthorne Bridge 0.jpg, The bridge at night – panoramic view File:Hawthorne Bridge pan - Portland, Oregon.jpg, Panoramic view from south and west File:Hawthorne Bridge bike counter, 2014.jpg, Bicycle counter in 2014

References

External links

Hawthorne Bridge
page on Multnomah County website *
Photo of the 1910 construction crew
* {{Tom McCall Waterfront Park Bridges in Portland, Oregon Vertical lift bridges in Oregon Bridges completed in 1910 Bridges over the Willamette River Historic American Engineering Record in Oregon National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Oregon Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon 1910 establishments in Oregon Buckman, Portland, Oregon Drawbridges on the National Register of Historic Places Southwest Portland, Oregon Hosford-Abernethy, Portland, Oregon Portland Historic Landmarks Tom McCall Waterfront Park Steel bridges in the United States Parker truss bridges in the United States