1962: Ribbon-Cutting Ceremonies and “an 11-Nozzle Salute” Mark the Formal Debut of a Bridge in Washington, D.C.

July 31, 1962

A steel beam bridge in Washington, D.C., was officially opened. This bridge was built to carry the 12^th Street Expressway over the Washington Channel, a body of water that parallels the Potomac River. Originally known as the Washington Channel Bridge, this structure was inaugurated with considerable fanfare.

These festivities, which included a fireboat giving what the Washington Post called “an 11-nozzle salute,” took place during the afternoon. Harold L. Aitken (1908-1998), director of the Department of Highways and Traffic for the District of Columbia, was among the public officials who participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the new structure.

“Homebound traffic soon put the new bridge to heavy use in the new non-stop route to Virginia,” noted the Washington Post. “Opened shortly before 3 p.m., the new freeway system was carrying a heavy traffic load by 4:30 p.m., the start of the evening rush hour, police reported.”

In 1965, the Washington Channel Bridge was renamed in memory of a longtime Republican lawmaker on Capitol Hill. Francis Case (1896-1962) who died a little over a month before the opening of the bridge, had been a U.S. senator from South Dakota since 1951; he previously served as the congressman representing what was then the Mount Rushmore State’s 2^nd district. Case was widely regarded as a staunch advocate for the District of Columbia. One of his biggest legislative achievements involved being an architect of the 23^rd Amendment, which gave those individuals residing in the nation’s capital the right to vote in presidential elections starting in 1964.

The Francis Case Memorial Bridge — featured in the accompanying photo taken in 2014 — now carries Interstate 395. This bridge accommodates not only motor vehicles but also cyclists and pedestrians.

Photo Credit: Public Domain

For more information on the Francis Case Memorial Bridge (originally called the Washington Channel Bridge), please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Case_Memorial_Bridge