Historic Columbia River Highway

Historic Columbia River Highway
Name	Historic Columbia River Highway
Other name	Old Columbia River Highway
Caption	Section of the highway near Multnomah Falls
Length mi	75
Established	1913
Maintained by	Oregon Department of Transportation, U.S. Forest Service
Direction a	West
Terminus a	Portland, Oregon
Direction b	East
Terminus b	The Dalles, Oregon
States	Oregon

Historic Columbia River Highway is an early 20th-century scenic highway in Oregon that follows the Columbia River Gorge between Portland, Oregon and The Dalles, Oregon. Conceived as a motor route to link urban centers with natural attractions such as Multnomah Falls, Crown Point and Horsetail Falls, the highway is noted for its engineering innovations, landscape design, and role in automobile tourism. It became a model for later scenic parkways and influenced federal approaches to National Park Service roadway design during the Progressive Era.

History

Conceived in the context of the Good Roads Movement, the project was championed by figures including Sam Hill and implemented during the administration of Oregon Governor Oswald West. Construction began in 1913, spurred by policies from the Oregon State Highway Commission and influenced by landscape principles promoted by the American Society of Landscape Architects and designers associated with the National Park Service. The highway opened in stages and was celebrated in contemporary periodicals alongside developments such as the Lincoln Highway and improvements promoted by the Automobile Club of America. As traffic patterns evolved with the Interstate Highway System and the completion of the Bonneville Dam infrastructure changes occurred, leading to bypasses like the Bonneville Cut-Off and re-designations by the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Route and Design

The original alignment runs eastward from Portland, Oregon through communities including Troutdale, Oregon, Dodson, Oregon, Corbett, Oregon, and Cascade Locks, Oregon before reaching The Dalles, Oregon via the Rowena Loops. Key design elements include narrow lanes, stone retaining walls, arched bridges, and viaducts engineered to complement sites such as Multnomah Falls and Crown Point with vista points and interpretive pullouts. The route integrates works by contractors who later contributed to projects for entities like the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the Civilian Conservation Corps. Its alignment intersects with trails and sites managed by Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and the Mount Hood National Forest.

Construction and Engineering

Engineers blended techniques from masonry, concrete arch construction, and early reinforced concrete practice, commissioning structures such as the Multnomah Falls Bridge and the stone arch at Shepperd's Dell. Construction contractors coordinated with surveying teams influenced by publications from the American Society of Civil Engineers and incorporated local basalt and sandstone. The highway required solutions for steep grades, drainage, and retaining walls above the Columbia River; these efforts paralleled contemporary projects like the Hoover Dam era advances in heavy civil works and influenced subsequent state highway engineering standards. Labor forces included skilled masons, carpenters, and crews whose work contributed to later New Deal projects administered by agencies such as the Works Progress Administration.

Scenic and Cultural Significance

The highway was promoted by tourism bureaus including the Oregon Travel Information Council and inspired artists, photographers, and writers from movements associated with the Arts and Crafts movement and regionalist painters. It provided access to scenic sites popularized by photographers like those represented in collections of the Historic American Engineering Record and landscape studies associated with University of Oregon. The corridor intersects with cultural resources tied to the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, and passes locations referenced in accounts of explorers such as Lewis and Clark Expedition. Its aesthetic approach informed later design manuals used by the National Park Service and scholars of the City Beautiful movement.

Preservation and Restoration

Historic designation efforts have involved partners including the Historic Columbia River Highway Advisory Commission, Oregon State Historic Preservation Office, and the National Park Service through programs like the National Register of Historic Places. Restoration projects have repaired masonry, replaced failing concrete, and re-established historic alignments where feasible; significant interventions have been coordinated with the Federal Highway Administration and the Oregon Department of Transportation. Advocacy by organizations including the Historic Columbia River Highway Committee and local preservation groups has sought to balance conservation with safety improvements required by standards promulgated after reports by entities like the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Recreation and Access

Today the corridor supports driving tours, bicycling routes promoted by groups such as Bike Portland, and hiking access to trailheads linked to the Pacific Crest Trail corridor and local loops maintained by Friends of the Columbia Gorge. Trail-building and interpretive signage projects coordinate with Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and U.S. Forest Service recreation planners, and access improvements have included pedestrian connections to sites like Multnomah Falls and viewpoints at Crown Point integrated with amenities overseen by the Port of Cascade Locks (Oregon). The highway remains a living landscape combining historic infrastructure, outdoor recreation, and regional tourism managed in partnership with state and federal agencies.

Category:Roads on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon Category:Transportation in Multnomah County, Oregon Category:Historic roads in the United States