Back in 2012 I visited the Gillespie Dam Bridge located southwest of Phoenix in rural Maricopa County along the Gila River. The Gillespie Dam Bridge is a truss bridge located directly south of the failed 1921 Gillespie Dam on the Gila River. The Gillespie Dam Bridge was completed in August of 1927 and was part of early US Route 80. The Gillespie Dam Bridge is 1,662 feet long, has a road deck 25 feet wide, has 9 spans, and 8 pilings in the Gila River Bed. The Gillespie Dam Bridge saw service on US Route 80 until the highway was shifted eastward in 1956 to the current Arizona State Route 85 corridor. The Gillespie Dam Bridge actually survived a breach of it's namesake dam. The Gillespie Dam is a 1,700 foot wide concrete arch structure which was completed in 1921 as stated above. The Gillespie Dam was originally designed for cars to travel over, but with the spill-over design it meant that it couldn't be crossed when the reservoir topped out. The ...
Because every road has a story.