Colorado Street Bridge
About this property
Colorado Street Bridge is a historic concrete arch bridge spanning the Arroyo Seco in Pasadena, California. It is often called Pasadena Bridge and less commonly Suicide Bridge, the latter due to the high number of suicides that once occurred here. Colorado Street Bridge carries Colorado Boulevard across the Arroyo Seco, connecting Pasadena with Eagle Rock and Glendale to the west. The bridge follows a curved path so that its footings sit on more solid ground than a straight bridge would have provided. Colorado Street Bridge was designed by Waddell & Harrington and built for $191,000 in 1912 ($6.37 million in 2025). The bridge opened on December 13, 1913, replacing the smaller Scoville Bridge located near the bottom of the Arroyo Seco. According to myth, a construction worker who was caught in a concrete mixer during construction was poured into one of the bridge's supports. The bridge was a part of U.S. Route 66 from c. 1936 to c. 1940. Colorado Street Bridge was closed and renovated following the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989; it reopened in 1993. Colorado Street Bridge became known locally as "Suicide Bridge" after dozens of people used it to commit suicide in the early 20th century. By 1937, 87 people had jumped to their death from the bridge. A 8-foot-high (2.4 m) barrier was added to the bridge during its renovation from 1989 and eventual reopening in December 1993 to deter suicides. Even so, on October 27, 2015, British-American model and reality television star Sam Sarpong used the bridge to leap to his death. In 2016, a 10-foot-high (3.0 m) temporary chain link fence was installed on the bridge's sidewalk, blocking the seating alcoves which were believed to be the primary route taken by jumpers. In 2017, the bridge was the site of nine deaths, and an additional four occurred between January to September 2018, after which the temporary fences were extended to cover the entire bridge. The city plans to replace the temporary fencing with permanent barriers, at least 7.5 feet (2.3 m) in height. The bridge spans 1,468 feet (447 m) at a maximum height of 150 feet (50 m) and features Beaux Arts arches, light standards, and railings. The bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated a California Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Colorado Street Bridge appears in Charlie Chaplin's 1921 film The Kid, where a mother is shown pining for her son at the east end of the bridge. In the 2008 film Yes Man, the bridge was featured in a bungee jumping scene. In the 2016 film La La Land, the protagonists take an evening stroll across the bridge.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Colorado Street Bridge listed on the National Register?
Colorado Street Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 12, 1981.
What type of historic resource is Colorado Street Bridge?
Colorado Street Bridge is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Colorado Street Bridge?
The period of significance for Colorado Street Bridge is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Colorado Street Bridge?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Colorado Street Bridge will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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