Кабрильовский мост в Сан-Диего: История и архитектура

The Cabrillo Bridge in San Diego, California is a historic bridge providing pedestrian and light automotive access between Balboa Park and the Uptown area of San Diego. It was built for the 1915 Panama–California Exposition. The bridge was nominated for the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and was named a Local Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1986.

The Cabrillo Bridge is one of several access routes to the cluster of museums located at the historic "El Prado Complex" (the former 1915 Panama Exposition site), which is east of the bridge in the middle of Balboa Park and continuing to a point near the Bea Evenson Fountain (and former trolley stop) just west of Park Boulevard. The east–west street atop the two lane bridge is called "El Prado". Many people mistakenly refer to the street as Laurel Street, which is a continuation of El Prado but ends at Sixth Avenue, and some refer to the bridge as the Laurel Street Bridge. Sixth Avenue forms the western boundary of Balboa Park. Laurel Street continues west from Sixth Avenue to form the southern border of San Diego International Airport, and ends at Harbor Drive on San Diego Bay. The structure is easily seen from the scenic Cabrillo Freeway (State Route 163), which is located on the floor of the canyon below. Construction of the freeway through the canyon below the bridge was completed in February 1948. However, traffic on the bridge is not visible from the freeway due to the unusual height of the bridge (120 feet (37 m)). The height is dictated entirely by the topography of the canyon. El Prado crosses the bridge at the same level as the ground on either end of the bridge, while State Route 163 passes beneath it at approximately the level of the original canyon floor. There is no direct access route between State Route 163 and Laurel Street or El Prado.

The bridge was built for the Panama–California Exposition of 1915. It provided the main access across Cabrillo Canyon (formerly known as Pound Canyon, which was used to hold cattle and horses in the late 19th century). An initial design for the bridge was developed by Bertram Goodhue that featured three large arches. The design was to be similar to Toledo, Spain's Alcántara Bridge. The innovative design featured a multiple arched cantilever structure, the first such bridge in California. Building began in December 1912 under the supervision of Allen. The concrete forms were made of of wood, mostly redwood. The length of the bridge is 916 feet (279 m) including approaches. The main span is 450 feet (137 m) long and 120 feet (37 m) high. The seven arches are each 56 feet (17 m) across and are supported by fourteen hollow concrete pillars. The bridge's construction cost reached $250,000 ($ today).

The bridge was primarily intended as a pedestrian pathway to the 1915 Exposition. It was dedicated April 12, 1914 by Franklin D. Roosevelt, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Roosevelt made the inaugural automobile crossing along with the mayor of the city, Charles F. O'Neill. For the next two years, auto traffic was reserved mostly for dignitaries. Redwood timbers, used as concrete forms in the original construction, smoldered for several hours. Once put out, the blaze was quickly forgotten. But as Balboa Park historian Richard Amero noted, the fire was an "omen," and "nothing was done to reduce the likelihood of future fires."

By October 1931, 17 people had "made the leap into eternity" from the bridge, said Mayor Walter Austin. One city official, after talk of installing suicide preventative measures failed, mentioned that "after a council meeting there are times a councilman might want to make use of a bridge." In 1934, a despondent sailor jumped from the bridge and splashed into the man made lagoon (Laguna de Puente) that at that time lay below. He survived, bruised but living.