U.S. Route 199 (US 199) became one of the original routes of the U.S. Numbered Highway System to be officially announced by the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads in 1927. As the northern spur of U.S. Route 99 (US 99), US 199 was designated to cover 84 miles (135.2 kilometers) between an area near Crescent City on California’s northern coast and the city of Grants Pass in southwestern Oregon’s Rogue Valley. This route connects both cities via the northern portion of the scenic Redwood Highway.
A major milestone for US 199 took place early in the summer of 1929, when a cantilever truss bridge built at a pivotal location on the route was opened with considerable fanfare. “June 22 has been set as the date for a mammoth celebration and dedication of the Smith river bridge on the Redwood highway, eight miles [12.9 kilometers] north of Crescent City,” reported the May 6 edition of the Healdsburg Enterprise.
This new structure along US 199 was named the Hiouchi Bridge. The origin of the word “Hiouchi” has been attributed to the phrase “Xaa-yuu-chit,” which means “deep blue water” in the language of the Native American nation known as the Tolowa people.
More than one thousand people turned out for the noontime dedication ceremony for the bridge. The California-based Blue Lake Advocate reported, “Californians, Oregonians, Washingtonians, and residents of other states who attended the dedication of the Hiouchi bridge over the Smith river and the coast-wide celebration at that site Saturday enthusiastically became willing workers for a great and united Pacific Coast as they attended the impressive ceremony which symbolized the breaking down of the last barrier on the Redwood Highway.”
The public officials joining those attendees for this celebration included Isaac L. Patterson (1859-1929), governor of Oregon, who died six months after the event; and C.C. Young (1869-1947), governor of California. The Blue Lake Advocate recounted that these governors “clasped hands and pledged cooperation between the two states as their automobile slowly broke through a barrier of greenery and ribbons strung across the bridge.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson Bull (1876-1949), chairman of the California Highway Commissioner, presided at the ceremony. His wife Berenice Bull (1888-1974) also performed a prominent role during the festivities; she christened the bridge by breaking a bottle containing water from the Smith River over one of the structure’s railings.
A few days later, the Healdsburg Enterprise amplified the broader significance of the bridge. This newspaper stated, “With the opening of the new Hiouchi bridge on the Redwood Highway, the last section of old narrow road on this route is eliminated and there is now excellent road from Crescent City to Grants Pass.”
This bridge remained in service until being demolished in 1989. US 199 itself is still in existence today, having long outlived its parent U.S. highway. US 99 was decommissioned in 1972, with most of that north-south route replaced by Interstate 5.
Photo Credit: Public Domain
Additional information on the dedication of the Hiouchi Bridge (also called the Smith River Bridge is available at Blue Lake Advocate 29 June 1929 — California Digital Newspaper Collection
For more information on U.S. Route 199 (US 199), please check out U.S. Route 199 – Wikipedia
Transportation History 