National Register of Historic Places

McMillin Bridge

Puyallup, Pierce County, Washington
Listed
July 15, 1982
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
82004275

About this property

The McMillin Bridge (also known as the Puyallup River Bridge) is a concrete half-through truss bridge crossing the Puyallup River, in Pierce County, Washington, built in 1934. The main span of the bridge is 170 feet (52 m) long, which was the longest beam span or concrete truss in the US when it was built. It was part of State Route 162 until it was replaced by a new span in 2015. The bridge design uses a hollow-box system, which was suggested to the design company of W. H. Witt Company by Homer M. Hadley. The bridge was built to replace a steel span that had been washed out by the flooding river in 1933. Because of economic conditions, the concrete design was chosen over a steel design, with a savings of $826, in addition to lower maintenance costs. The bridge is unusual in that it combines concrete with the half-through truss design, which was usually built with steel. The previous bridge was damaged in 1933, but the replacement bridge was ready to open in 1934, despite the Great Depression. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It was saved from demolition after its replacement by a new bridge carrying State Route 162, which opened in 2015. List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state) List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Washington (state) Holstine, Craig; Hobbs, Richard (2005). Spanning Washington: Historic Highway Bridges of the Evergreen State. Washington State University Press. ISBN 0-87422-281-8. Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. WA-73, "McMillin Bridge, Spanning Puyallup River at State Route 162, McMillin, Pierce County, WA", 16 photos, 3 measured drawings, 24 data pages, 1 photo caption page

Location

Puyallup, Pierce County, Washington
47.13004, -122.23649

Categories

ENGINEERINGTRANSPORTATION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

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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Nearby Historic Sites

McMillin School
Industrial
0.8 mi
Woolrey-Koehler Hop Kiln
Industrial
2.3 mi
Alderton School
Industrial
2.8 mi
Orton, Charles W., House
Industrial
4 mi
Meeker, Ezra, Mansion
Industrial
4.9 mi

Questions about this property

When was McMillin Bridge listed on the National Register?

McMillin Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 15, 1982.

What type of historic resource is McMillin Bridge?

McMillin Bridge is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for McMillin Bridge?

The period of significance for McMillin Bridge is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near McMillin Bridge?

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