Bridge Monday; the Roosevelt Lake Bridge and Roosevelt Dam

Back in the early 2010s I frequently visited Gila County Arizona. Often my travel took me up Arizona State Route 88 (usually for fun) and Arizona State Route 188. The junction of AZ 88 and AZ 188 holds what was two significant bridging structures of Roosevelt Lake; the Roosevelt Dam and Roosevelt Lake Arch Bridge.

AZ 88 is one of the oldest State Highways in Arizona dating back to 1927. While the highway was originally intended to be signed as AZ 66 the designation of AZ 88 was ultimately chosen due to US 66 being assigned over what was intended to be US 60 in Arizona. As originally signed AZ 88 stretched from US Route 80 in Apache Junction east to the first US 180 in Globe. By 1927 Roosevelt Dam was long completed since 1911 as it was the signature structure of the Salt River Project. Roosevelt Dam was used as a bridging structure from AZ 88 north to the road to Payson. This 1927 highway map of Arizona shows the location of Roosevelt Dam on the initial alignment of AZ 88.

1927 State Highway Map

Construction of Roosevelt Dam began along the Salt River in Gila County by 1903, as stated above the structure was completed by 1911. Roosevelt Dam and the Salt River Project were part of the 1902 Reclamation Act which paved the way for later more well known public works projects such as the Hoover Dam. Roosevelt Dam as originally completed was a completely masonry dam and was the largest of it's type at the time.

According to Arizonaroads.com the route of AZ 188 from AZ 88 at Roosevelt Dam north to Payson was designated in 1958. At the time the junction of AZ 88 and AZ 188 was at Roosevelt Dam. AZ 188 can be viewed in it's originally configuration crossing Roosevelt Dam on the 1961 State Highway Map.

Arizonaroads.com on AZ 188

1961 State Highway Map

In 1989 an expansion project to raise Roosevelt Dam from 280 feet to 357 began. Said project was to expand Roosevelt Dam via use of a new masonry cover over the original dam structure. The Roosevelt Dam expansion project required AZ 188 be shifted onto a new bridge over Roosevelt Lake. The new Roosevelt Lake Arch bridge was completed by 1992 and remains one of the more scenic bridges in Arizona.

bridgehunter.com on the Roosevelt Lake Bridge

According to Arizonaroads.com AZ 188 was shifted over what was AZ 88 east of Roosevelt Dam to Globe by 2000. The change was apparently instigated due to a new ADOT policy about having a highway have both terminus points at the same route.

Comments

Hawaii Route 8930

Hawaii Route 8930 is a 2.5-mile State Highway on the Island of O'hau. Hawaii Route 8930 is aligned over Kualakai Parkway over the course of its entire alignment south from Interstate H-1 to Kapolei Parkway. Hawaii Route 8930 is one of the newest Hawaii Routes only having been completed during 2010. This page is part of the Gribblenation O'ahu Highways page. All Gribblenation and Roadwaywiz media related to the highway system of O'ahu can be found at the link below: https://www.gribblenation.org/p/gribblenation-oahu-highways-page.html Part 1; the history of Hawaii Route 8930 The history of Hawaii Route 8930 is brief given it is a modern facility. Hawaii Route 8930 and what was known as "North-South Road" were built to facilitate the developing areas of Kapolei on western O'ahu. According to hawaiihighways.com the first stage of Hawaii Route 8930 was completed from Kapolei Parkway north to Farrington Highway as a four-lane highway during November...

Madera County Road 607 and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road

Madera County Road 607 is an approximately seven-mile rural unsurfaced highway which spans from Road 600 near Raymond west to Road 29. Road 607 west from Raymond Road Cemetery (established in 1905) is part of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road corridor surveyed in 1853. The corridor lies in the gap between Fresno Crossing at the Fresno River west to Newton's Crossing at the Chowchilla River. The Buchanan Copper Mine would be along what is now Road 607 in the namesake Buchanan Hollow during July 1863. The Buchanan Mine is thought to have once had a population of between 1,000-1,500 residents by the early 1870s. Copper prices would decline in the decade after the Civil War and much of the activity at Buchanan shifted towards cattle ranching. The last businesses in the community would shutter during World War II and it is now a true ghost town. Part 1; the history of Madera County Road 607 and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road What is now Road 607 was a component of the larger Sto...

Old US Route 60/70 through Hell (Chuckwall Valley Road and Ragsdale Road)

Back in 2016 I explored some of the derelict roadways of the Sonoran Desert of Riverside County which were part of US Route 60/70; Chuckwalla Valley Road and Ragsdale Road. US 60 and US 70 were not part of the original run of US Routes in California. According to USends.com US 60 was extended into California by 1932. US 60 doesn't appear on the California State Highway Map until the 1934 edition. USends.com on US 60 endpoints 1934 State Highway Map Conversely US 70 was extended into California by 1934, it first appears on the 1936 State Highway Map. USends.com on US 70 endpoints 1936 State Highway Map When US 60 and US 70 were extended into California they both utilized what was Legislative Route Number 64 from the Arizona State Line west to Coachella Valley. LRN 64 was part of the 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act routes. The original definition of LRN 64 routed between Mecca in Blythe and wasn't extended to the Arizona State Line until 1931 acc...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog