Richard R. Kohler, president of the Washington County Historical Society, will discuss the historical and architectural significance of the Rockville Bridge on April 7 at 6 p.m. in the Rockville Community Center, located at 43 East Main Street in Rockville. The presentation is free and open to the public.
The Rockville Bridge is a Parker through-truss bridge crossing the Virgin River. Built in 1924 as an essential automobile link between the recently established Zion National Park and the north rim of the Grand Canyon, this bridge was mostly funded by the National Parks Service. The first NPS director, Stephen Mather, personally paid $5,000 towards its construction, a sum equal to $68,000 today.
Architecturally and technologically significant, the Rockville Bridge is the last surviving Parker through-truss bridge in the state of Utah. A single-lane structure spanning 217 feet across the Virgin River, it is the only public crossing for 14 ½ miles, connecting locals and tourists alike to Gooseberry Mesa, Smithsonian Butte, and Grafton.
“The Rockville Bridge has been on the National Register since 1995,” Kohler said, “and the US Secretary of the Interior’s standards state that ‘every reasonable effort shall be made to continue a historic bridge in useful transportation service. Primary consideration shall be given to rehabilitation of the bridge site. Only when this option has been considered shall other alternatives be explored.’”
Richard R. Kohler is an architect/historian currently serving as president of the Washington County Historical Society. He received a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Utah and a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Hawaii, completing postgraduate studies at Harvard University.
More information is available by calling (435) 772-0992.
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