Douglas Crossing Bridge
Location: vicinity of Granada
County: Prowers County
Date Constructed: 1936
Built by: WPA
Architectural Description:
This six-span masonry bridge located on County Road 28 is made of quarry-faced coursed ashlar. Its span is approximately 113’, and it is approximately 22’ high and 30’ wide. The six 15’ wide semicircular arches rest on 9’ high piers on new concrete bases. The voussoirs are alternating narrow and wide dressed-face stones. There are two corbel stone courses – one at the road level and one at the coping level. Centered between the courses and above each arch are either diamond or circular blocks with stippled coats.
Historical Background:
The bridge was built as a WPA project along with a much smaller bridge immediately to the north. The federal allocation was reported as $17,400, and the local contribution was $2,200. Because the stone for the bridge was quarried nearby, the cost for materials was estimated at only $1,700. The application for the project stated that the bridge was necessary because it would “give the County a thru Highway from Granada south to the Baca-Prowers County line and will serve a large number of farms and ranches in the South-east part of the County that a present time are cut off from their natural markets on the railroad by Butte Creek which in this section lacks for good crossings.” It was reported in an article titled “A Job That Made Men Proud” in the December 1936 issue of the WPA Worker that an expert stone-mason trained seven other men in stonework as the bridge was built. “The first man taught seven green helpers as he deftly cut and chiseled the stone. Result: Seven more skilled men and a bridge to be proud of.” In 1985, the bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Highway Bridges in Colorado Multiple Property Submission.