December 17, 2013 - Bixby Bridge

[xoxoxoBruce]

The amount of material used in the construction was enormous: 300,000 feet of timber were used in the falsework, 4,700 cubic yards of earth and rock had to be excavated, and 45,000 sacks of cement were used. The means of transporting the materials across the canyon came from platforms and slings suspended from a cable 300 feet above the creek. Cement was chosen instead of steel due to material and maintenance costs. The cement came from Davenport, near Santa Cruz, and from San Andreas. The creek below supplied the needed water for the mix.

I wonder how many Redwoods died for that bridge?

The falsework, which was the wooden structure built to shape the arch and form the wet concrete, was one of the outstanding accomplishments of E.C. Panton, the general superintendent of Ward Engineering Co. Credit also went to C.H. Purcell, California state highway engineer, F.W. Panhorst, acting bridge engineer, and I.O. Jahlstrom, resident engineer. Two months were spent building the falsework alone. One of the main difficulties was raising and holding the arch frame, exposed as it was to the high winds. The foundation also had to resist the waves which at times reached its base. Work was halted for a time until the dangers of winter storms passed.

Monterey Historical.