Eastbridge, Arizona facts for kids
Eastbridge was a train station. It was on the east side of the Colorado River. This station was in Mohave County, Arizona. It was built where the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad first crossed the river. This spot was about three miles southeast of Needles, California.
History
Building the First Bridge
In 1883, the railroad wanted to build a bridge. This wooden bridge would cross the Colorado River. It would connect Eastbridge station to the California side. The problem was the ground. It was very soft and wet. This area was a flood plain in the Mohave Valley. There was no strong, solid ground for the bridge. The river crossing was also very wide, over 1600 feet.
Building the bridge was hard. It started during the flood season in May. For three months, workers tried to put wooden poles into the riverbed. These poles are called pilings. But the river was too strong. The floods kept washing the pilings away.
They used a special machine. It was a pile driver on a boat. This boat was called Barge No. 3. Another boat, the Mohave II, helped hold it steady. This allowed them to drive pilings into the middle of the river.
Challenges and New Plans
The first bridge was finished in August 1883. But it was still not safe from floods. The river's spring floods often washed it out. The bridge had to be rebuilt many times. This happened in 1884, 1886, and 1888.
Because of these problems, the railroad decided to change its route. They moved their tracks south. The new path went along the California side. It went to a place called Beal. Then it went to a spot across from Mellen.
The Red Rock Bridge
From 1889 to May 1890, a new bridge was built. This was the Red Rock Bridge. It was a different type of bridge. It was a cantilever bridge. This new bridge was built on solid rock foundations. This was much better than the soft ground at Eastbridge.
After the Red Rock Bridge was finished, the old tracks were no longer needed. The section of track leading to Eastbridge was abandoned in 1890. This included the station at Powell and the Eastbridge station itself.
