Miles Glacier Bridge facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Miles Glacier Bridge |
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Miles Glacier Bridge in 2008. The far left span as seen in this photo shows the repairs performed in 2004.
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| Carries | road bridge |
| Crosses | Copper River |
| Locale | Cordova, Alaska |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | through Pennsylvania (Petit) truss bridge |
| Material | steel and concrete |
| Total length | 1,550 feet (470 m) |
| Number of spans | 4 |
| Piers in water | 3 |
| History | |
| Construction begin | 1909 |
| Construction end | 1910 |
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Million Dollar Bridge
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Damage done by the earthquake, with the temporary fixes performed to make the bridge usable
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 Location in Alaska
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| Location | Mile 48 of Copper River Highway, about 35 miles (56 km) northeast of Cordova |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1910 |
| Built by | Katalla Corporation; Carnegie Steel Company; American Bridge Company |
| Architect | A.C. O'Neel; Erastus Corning Hawkins; |
| NRHP reference No. | 00000293 |
| Added to NRHP | March 31, 2000 |
The Miles Glacier Bridge, also known as the Million Dollar Bridge, is a famous bridge in Alaska. It was built in the early 1900s across the Copper River. This river is about fifty miles from Cordova.
This bridge is a special type called a Pennsylvania truss bridge. It helped complete a 196-mile railroad line. This railway was for the Copper River and Northwestern Railway. Important people like J. P. Morgan and the Guggenheim family built it. They wanted to move copper from the old mining town of Kennicott. This town is now inside the Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve. The copper was shipped to the port of Cordova.
The bridge got its "Million Dollar" nickname because it cost $1.4 million to build. But it was worth it! About $200 million worth of copper was shipped because of the bridge. Today, it's hard to reach the bridge by road. You can only get there by jet boat up the Copper River. Or you can travel downriver from Chitina. This is because parts of the Copper River Highway have washed away. Even with limited access, the Miles Glacier Bridge is still a popular spot for tourists.
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Building the Million Dollar Bridge
The Copper River and Northwestern Railway and its bridges were built between 1906 and 1911. A man named Michael James Heney led this huge project. The Miles Glacier Bridge was the most important part of the railway. It was a big challenge to build.
The bridge needed to cross 1,500 feet of the Copper River. This area is between two large glaciers. Icebergs, some as tall as 20 feet, would break off from the Miles Glacier. These icebergs moved quickly with the river's current. The river's water level also changed a lot, up to 24 feet. The riverbed was made of loose sand and gravel, about 20 feet deep.
Engineers chose the bridge site in 1907. The bridge would have four sections, called spans. These spans would rest on three piers. The piers were placed on sandbars to avoid most of the ice. The first two piers also needed special icebreakers. These would protect them from the large ice chunks.
Workers used special structures called caissons to dig the piers. The railway tracks reached the bridge site in October 1908. Actual bridge construction began on April 5, 1909. The first span was finished in just 10.5 days! The second took 6 days, and the third took 10 days. The fourth span was done a month later. The entire bridge was ready for use by July 1910.
From Railroad to Highway
The Miles Glacier Bridge was first used for trains. But its time as a railroad bridge ended in 1938. That's when the Copper River and Northwestern Railway closed down.
Later, people decided to turn the old railway into a highway. Work to change the bridge for cars was finished in 1958. That same year, a special plaque was put on the bridge. It said:
This Bridge once served the Copper River and Northwestern Railroad trains, and was converted to a Highway Bridge in 1958. The Bridge crosses the Copper River between two scenic and active glaciers. The Childs Glacier to the west and the Miles Glacier to the east. Known as the Million Dollar Bridge, and constructed during severe winter conditions. It was considered one of the great engineering feats of all time.
Surviving the Earthquake
In 1964, a very strong earthquake hit Alaska. Many bridges along the Copper River Highway were destroyed. But the Million Dollar Bridge was "merely damaged." One of its spans, Span #4, slid off its base.
After the earthquake, temporary fixes were made. Workers used cables, metal beams, and planks. This made the bridge usable again. The bridge was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. This means it is recognized as an important historical site.
Modern Repairs
Permanent repairs to the bridge started in 2004. The repaired bridge was officially opened in August 2005. This decision to fix the bridge was important. In September 1995, a big flood made the bridge impassable. Engineers decided it was cheaper to repair the bridge than to remove it. Removing it or cleaning up if it collapsed would have been very expensive. A cleanup would have been needed to protect the important Copper River salmon runs.
The repairs cost $16 million from the federal government. Another $3 million came from state tax dollars. In August 2016, a large iceberg hit an icebreaker that protected the bridge's first pier. This damaged icebreaker moved downstream during a high water event in 2019. It no longer protects the first pier.
