With shorter cooler days I decided to keep my “Search” closer to home. I’ve found several internet sources that say that the old bridge that crosses the South Canadian river north of Newcastle was the first federal project in Oklahoma. It would be an easy afternoon trip from my home in Oklahoma City.
Almost all of the initial research I’ve been doing to find the Ozark Auto Trail is on the internet. Travel blogs, government websites, newspaper websites, map sites etc. Unfortunately, when others like me find something, they tend to repeat it as fact without sourcing it. So, something that seems to be corroborated by several sources is really just one murky source being repeated several times. The bridge across the South Canadian north of Newcastle is no exception. I first found the reference to the bridge reading a blog early on in my “Search”. Then, on Wikipedia. And, finally, at the Oklahoma Historical Society’s “Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History” on Oklahoma State University’s digital library, http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia . I’ll do my best to let you know where I get my information. You can decide whether or not they are reputable sources.
Although I’d driven by the “Newcastle Bridge” several times on my way from Oklahoma City to Chickasha on I-44, I’d always thought that it was an old railroad bridge. It was only after I started researching the Ozark Trail that I found it was an old highway bridge built in 1923.
The day I set out was overcast and cool, but I had just purchased some warmer riding gear and it gave me a good chance to check it out. I’d read on Wikipedia that until the bridge was built, farmers from Newcastle would ford the South Canadian river at May Avenue to go to the Farmers Market at Reno and Western. So, I thought I’d ride down May Avenue until it ran into the South Canadian River then find a way to access the bridge.
It was slow going. May Avenue has always been a main thoroughfare in Oklahoma City and includes on its route the state fairgrounds. May is STILL a main thoroughfare jammed with traffic and stop lights. As I drove from north to south the architecture changed from 1950’s Contemporary styles to 1940’s Art Deco to turn-of-the-century farm houses.
I didn’t take many pictures this day. There was a lot of construction on May and when I got to the South Canadian I spent most of my time driving down one road and then the next trying to reach the river and hopefully gain access to the old bridge. There were lots of “No Trespassing” signs many of which were hand written and included threats of bodily harm.
Finally, running out of time and patience, I jumped up on I-44 and drove by the bridge. I had never realized how CLOSE the old bridge was to the interstate. Only a few steps! I took Exit 108 and drove an old section of portland cement south toward Newcastle. It reminded me a lot of the roadway that connected to the Sapulpa bridge, so I knew it must have been part of the original Ozark Trail. Little of the old roadway is left. It’s been obliterated to make way for the new overpass. I took the overpass over I-44 and stopped to take a photo of the bridge.
Then back down the ramp and onto I-44 again. Then I took the SW 74th street exit went underneath I-44 and back south again. I pulled onto the shoulder just shy of the new bridge. A little dangerous, I know. What’s that old saying, “curiosity killed the cat”? Cars wooshed by as I walked across the bar ditch and climbed up the embankment to the bridge. The people in those cars probably figured I was looking for a place to pee, but I was there to get a couple of photos.
It’s interesting to compare my photo with one from the 1940s that's on the Oklahoma Department of Transportation website .
I’ve driven by the “Newcastle Bridge” many times never realizing it’s true identity and the story of it’s importance to the state and the region; Federal Highway Project #1 in Oklahoma, vital link for farmers between Newcastle and the Farmers Market in Oklahoma City, vital link for commerce between Missouri and New Mexico. It made me wonder. What other places we pass by every day without knowing their story and their significance? How many PEOPLE do we pass by every day without knowing their story and their significance?
