A new wooden superstructure built on the existing piers of the first bridge of the same name. Work progressed span by span from east to west across the bridge, which allowed streetcar service to be mostly maintained during construction, apart from a short period in December 1899 when the bridge was closed to all traffic. Occasionally, passengers would need to transfer from car to car in the middle of the bridge as the work would not allow a safe route all the way across, and the trolley wire was sometimes removed for short distances and cars would be required to “shoot the gap” under their own momentum [I have doubts about the feasibility of this, but it was reported at the time].

The reconstruction work retained the original 1891 swing-span for budgetary reasons, although it was in poor condition and had to be replaced within a year of the new bridge being opened.

This new bridge was always seen as a stop-gap measure—early estimates of its life span only expected it to serve for a maximum of 15 years—but by 1907, plans for a steel replacement were already being drawn up. In June 1907, voters approved $450,000 in municipal bonds to fund the new bridge’s construction.

The bridge was closed to all traffic on January 20, 1909 as a safety precaution after a log jam caught against its piers during high water, and the plans for the new bridge were accelerated. As the new bridge—now known to us as the Hawthorne Bridge—would use the same alignment as the old bridge, it had to be completely demolished before construction could begin. This took place in August and September 1909, and the new Hawthorne Bridge opened in its place on December 19, 1910.

While the bridge was closed, streetcar passengers used special shuttle cars that ran from Third and Yamhill streets on the West Side over the Morrison-street bridge to Morrison and Water streets for transfer to Oregon City and Cazadero cars [which must have used the freight track along Water street to make this connection]. The shuttle cars also continued on to Hawthorne and Grand to make connection with Hawthorne, Mount Scott and Sellwood cars.

Lines Served

• Hawthorne (1889–1936)
• Mount Scott (1892–1901, 1901–1936)
• Oregon City (1891–1958)
• Sellwood (1892–1940)

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