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Rex T. Barber Veterans Memorial Bridge

Coordinates: 44°23′35″N 121°11′35″W / 44.393°N 121.193°W / 44.393; -121.193
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Rex T. Barber
Veterans Memorial Bridge
View from west in August 2011
Coordinates44°23′35″N 121°11′35″W / 44.393°N 121.193°W / 44.393; -121.193
Carries US 97
CrossesCrooked River
LocaleJefferson County, Oregon
Characteristics
Designconcrete arch
Total length535 ft (163.1 m)[1]
Longest span410 ft (125.0 m)[1]
Clearance below300 ft (91.4 m)[1]
History
Construction start1998[1]
Opened2000[1]
Location
Map
Crooked River in central Oregon

The Rex T. Barber Veterans Memorial Bridge is a concrete arch bridge in the western United States; it spans the Crooked River gorge in Jefferson County in central Oregon. Designed by T. Y. Lin International, the bridge was completed in 2000 to replace the Crooked River High Bridge. Parallel and west, the older bridge was built in 1926 and was not wide enough to accommodate increased traffic on US 97.

The bridge has a total length of 535 ft (163 m), an arch span of 410 ft (125 m), and is situated 300 ft (91 m) above the canyon floor.[1] The elevation of the road deck is approximately 2,770 feet (840 m) above sea level. It was the first bridge in the United States to use a cast-in-place segmental method of construction.[2][3]

Initially named the Crooked River Bridge, it was renamed in 2003 for Rex T. Barber (1917–2001), a native of the area. A World War II fighter pilot in the Pacific Theater, Barber shot down the plane carrying Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in 1943.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Crooked River Bridge / Rex T. Barber Bridge". Structurae. Nicolas Janberg. February 5, 2016. Archived from the original on November 1, 2016. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  2. ^ "2000 Seventh Biennial Bridge Awards Competition". Portland Cement Association. n.d. Archived from the original on February 12, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  3. ^ "Crooked River Bridge". BridgePros.com. n.d. Archived from the original on October 19, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  4. ^ "Notable Oregonians: Rex T. Barber - WWII Fighter Pilot and Ace". Oregon Blue Book. November 19, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2008.