The Salinas River Bridge was formerly identified as Bridge No. 49-106. It
was designed by San Luis Obispo County Surveyor A. F. Parsons and
constructed by the Henderson Bridge Company in 1914. A bridge rating sheet
completed in 1985 as part of Caltrans statewide Historic Bridge Inventory
described it as an "excellent example of its type in its region, and [it]
has served as a locally important crossing of the Salinas River for more
than seventy years." As part of that inventory effort, the Salinas River
Bridge was determined to be eligible for listing in the National Register
of Historic Places under Criteria A and C. The bridge is significant
under Criterion A as a locally important crossing of the Salinas River; it
is significant under Criterion C as an excellent regional example of a
Parker truss bridge. The State Historic Preservation Officer concurred in
that determination in September 1985.
In 1990, Caltrans architectural Historian Bonnie W. Parks completed a
Historic Architectural Survey Report as part of the Salinas River Bridge
Replacement project (Expenditure Authorization 351200). Her discussion of
the bridge property (or, more accurately, the land across the river from
the bridge property) follows:
This single property is located on the east side of the Salinas
River, approximately five miles
northeast of the town of Santa Margarita, directly across the river
from the Santa Margarita Rancho
lands. Previoulsy used by the padres for growing fields, the Rancho
was granted to Joaquin
Estrada by Gov. Pro Tem Manuel Jimeno on September 27, 1841. Estrada
converted the land to
cattle raising -- the agriculture to cattle evolution being typical
of the 22 Land Grant Ranchos in
San Luis Obispo County. Known as the "Queen if the Cattle Ranches,"
it consisted of 17,734 acres
when patented April 9, 1861. Estrada, known for his lavish parties,
was forced by financial problems
to sell the Rancho to Martin Murphy about this same time. Murphy
also entertained extravagantly,
as did his son Pat who inherited the Rancho. In 1888, the town of
Santa Margarita was laid out
on Rancho land. Southern Pacific's lines went through the town and
it served as the railhead
for five years while the line, including several tunnels, was built
across the Cuesta to San Luis
Obispo. It remained a shipping point for grain, cattle, poultry, and
minerals. The land on which
this property [i.e., the Salinas River Bridge] sits was outside the
Rancho boundaries and its
specific history is not known.
A Caltrans Supplemental Bridge Report dated April 8, 1992 states that the
"structure was built in 1914 and has served continuously. . ."
The bridge abutments underwent a seismic retrofit in 1996.
