Humboldt River Bridge — Winnemucca, NV - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The following information from the National Register files:

The Humboldt River Bridge, built in Winnemucca in 1910, is one of only two remaining concrete arch-deck bridges in the state of Nevada. It was the first reinforced concrete, arch-deck bridge erected in Humboldt County. The Reno Construction Company of Reno, Nevada, constructed the bridge under the supervision of engineer George S. Nickerson, who designed the structure. With its erection, the bridge became the most important crossing of the Humboldt River in the county as it served as the gateway to Paradise Valley, the Quinn River Valley, Kings River, all of northern Humboldt County, and parts of southern Oregon and Idaho.

The bridge crosses the river which runs through the north part of Winnemucca. Bridge Street runs south across the bridge from the Union Pacific (originally the Western Pacific) railyards, through the center of town, to the Southern Pacific Railroad (originally the Central Pacific) at the south edge of town. The structure is 130 feet long with a roadway thirty-one feet wide. Its two flattened arches gracefully span the river and are supported by one central rectangular pier. The pattern of the wood forms, which held the concrete in place as it dried, are still visible on the underside of the bridge.

Originally, the deck of the bridge had two four-foot-wide sidewalks on either side of the twenty-three-foot roadway; these have been removed to provide more space for traffic lanes. A very low reinforced concrete curb ran along both edges of the deck; it has mostly deteriorated along the north length of the bridge. Three square concrete piers, about three feet in height, flanked the two ends of the bridge; they also rose above the deck at the central point of the bridge where it is supported by the central pier in the river. The two end piers along the north length of the bridge are no longer there. Two rows of pipes supported by vertical metal supports run between the low piers along the edge of the roadway. These pipes are not original to the structure, but follow the appearance of the original railings. Water pipes run along the outer edge of the roadbed.

In 1850 Winnemucca was just a ferry crossing on the Humboldt River with a toll house and a few outbuildings. In 1867, a cottonwood pole toll bridge was built about 100 yards downstream from the ferry crossing. Construction of the Central Pacific Railroad in 1868 through the south end of Winnemucca encouraged more traffic over the bridge. The sagebrush road leading from the bridge across the town to the railroad became a thoroughfare which evolved into the main street named Bridge Street. Consequently, the commercial area of Winnemucca developed north-south along Bridge Street and east-west along the railroad. The wood bridge continued to serve its purpose, providing transportation across the Humboldt into Winnemucca, until the great flood of 1910 damaged its abutments. This heavy damage required the Humboldt County Commissioners to put out a bid for the construction of a new and modern bridge which was completed in December 1910. In 1936-37 the Melarkey Street Bridge was built about 100 yards to the west of the Humboldt River Bridge to carry the new U.S. Highway 95 across the river. This new bridge and road changed traffic patterns through Winnemucca. Bridge Street no longer served as the major artery for traffic going north or south, having been bypassed by U.S. 95.