The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1908-04-10
BRIDGE ACROSS SNAKE RIVER.
Spectacular Piece of Engineering
Planned by Promoters of the
Electric Roads in Southern
Idaho.

The contemplated erection of q
suspension bridge of steel to span the
Snake river just below the Shoshone
Falls, over which eventually will
pass cars from network of electric
lines on the" Twin Falls tract and
connecting the south with the north
side, shows part of what is in store
for Idaho's irrigated empire, through
the efforts of W. S. Kuhn of Pitts
burg, president of the Twin Falls
company, and his associates.
This gigantic undertaking, which
would give Idaho by far the highest
bridge ever built, is proposed by the
promoters of the Twin Falls tract,
and while it has not been defininitely
decided as to its construction, it is
regarded by those who are doing
things on the great tract as most es-
sential to the success of their plans
for further development of the tract
and it is considered probable that a
decision will be reached which will
mean the starting of work on this
feature in the not far distant future.
Telling of this, in connection with
other features of development, the
Shoshone Journal says:
By long odds the most spectacular
engineering work projected by the
company even more than the taking
of a great river like either of the big
canals out of the steep canyon and
spreading it over the thirsty land, is
the proposed bridge across Snake riv-
er at Shoshone Falls.
Just below the falls there is vast
pool, where the waters have boiled
and eddied for ages, and Tapped
away the crags by their mad violence
But few hundred yards down the
stream, the canyon closes in again
until the cliffs are only 1888 feet
apart at the top. A line thrown
straight across at this point would
be $50 feet high-twice as high any
other bridge ever built 1t is here
that it is proposed to build bridge
that shall carry the traveller across
the great chasm, without descending
a foot into the gorge. Either sus-
pension span of this length, or a can
tilever or arch span somewhat less,
could be built for approximately
$25O,000. The arch or cantilever
span could be shorter as it would be
possible to build the towers up from
the canyon and so shorten to posi-
bly, 500 feet the enormously expen-
sive main span.
| But what bridge 1t would be! A
spidery steel structure, almost two
city blocks above the roaring river,
| with the fresh spray of the great
cataract blowing up in ones face,
spanning the most marvellous gorge
in America, and leading from the
golden fields of the Twin Falls Sec
tion to the equally golden fields and
waving orchards of the North Side,
it would present nature and industry
in their most feverish moods in START
ling contrast. Such bridge would
necessarily be built to accommodate
| the electric line which will event
ually be built from Twin Falls
across to the northward, probably to
| Shoshone, and would do wonders In
developing the whole country. While
the bridge Is not an immediate pros
pect, 1t Is the opinion of some of the
heaviest flnanciers that II made a
toll bridge 1t could be made to pay
from the first day, even II the work
were started now.-Pocatello Tri-
bune.