Mitchell Point Tunnel
The Mitchell Point Tunnel was a tunnel located towards the eastern end of the Historic Columbia River Highway in Oregon, United States west of Hood River. The original tunnel existed from 1915 to 1966. A pedestrian and bike only tunnel is expected to open in 2025.
History
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The tunnel was designed by John Arthur Elliott, who was inspired by a tunnel similarly set into a cliff face above Lake Lucerne in Switzerland.[1] It was built in 1915 and opened late in the year, the first major roadway tunnel in the United States.[2] The tunnel measured 390 feet (120 m) long, 18 feet (5.5 m) wide, and 10 feet (3.0 m) tall.[2] At the time it was one of the most expensive, if not the most expensive, sections of road ever built.[3][4]
In 1932, the Toothrock Tunnel was opened, and some traffic was rerouted to the new alignment,[5] though Mitchell Point Tunnel remained open to vehicle traffic until the early 1950s, when the road was rerouted to the base of Mitchell Point.[1] The tunnel was subsequently blocked off with debris, and remained closed until 1966 when it was destroyed as part of Interstate 80N construction.[1]
_-_Motoring_Magazine_and_Motor_Life_July_1915_(page_16_crop).jpg)
_-Motoring_Magazine_and_Motor_Life_July_1915_(page_17_crop).jpg)
As part of the rebuilding of the Columbia River Highway into a network of trails, the Oregon Department of Transportation has considered the possibility of boring a new tunnel on Mitchell Point.[6]
Mitchell's Point is named for Captain Mitchell, an early Oregon settler who was said to have jumped from the point to commit suicide, rather than be captured by natives, during a conflict in 1856 later dubbed the Cascades Massacre.[7] In 1921 there were two proposals to change the name to honor heroes of overseas wars.[8]
In 2021 the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) announced commencement of a project to build a replica tunnel in the original location.[9] Construction is underway, with a completion in 2025.[10] On November 16, 2024 ODOT had a preview event of the tunnel, letting people view the Columbia River Gorge from Mitchell Point Tunnel for the first time in 71 years.
See also
[edit]- List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Oregon
- List of tunnels documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Oregon
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Historic Columbia River Highway Recording Project" (PDF). Oregon Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
- ^ a b Berlow, Lawrence (2015). Reference Guide to Famous Engineering Landmarks of the World: Bridges, Tunnels, Dams, Roads and Other Structures. Routledge. ISBN 978-1579580926.
- ^ Motoring Magazine and Motor Life, July 1915, p. 14
- ^ "The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current, July 11, 1915, SECTION THREE, Page 11, Image 43 « Historic Oregon Newspapers".
- ^ "Tunnel Creator Honored by Scholarship". Columns - The University of Washington Alumni Magazine. March 2002. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
- ^ "Mitchell Point project receives $28 million from US Dept. of Transportation". Gorge News Center. November 26, 2016. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
- ^ "Native Americans attack Americans at the Cascades of the Columbia on March 26, 1856". Retrieved June 2, 2021.
- ^ Simpson, Claude L. (October 9, 1921). "Scenic Point Turns Mind to Tragic Legend". Oregon Journal.
- ^ "Columbia Gorge's Mitchell Point Tunnel Soon to Be a Restored Treasure". My Oregon News. May 20, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
- ^ "Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail - Mitchell Point Crossing (project newsletter)" (PDF). Western Federal Lands Highway Division. Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. January 12, 2024.
External links
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The full text of The Most Costly Road in the World at Wikisource- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. OR-36-R, "Historic Columbia River Highway, Mitchell Point Tunnel and Viaduct, Through Lower Mitchell Point on Historic Columbia River Highway, Troutdale, Multnomah County, OR", 29 data pages
- Vintage Postcards of Mitchell Point Tunnel[usurped]
- https://bikeportland.org/2024/11/11/this-weekend-the-mitchell-point-tunnel-in-the-gorge-will-open-to-the-public-for-first-time-in-71-years-391232
