Swing Bridge At Kamiah Opened Just Once

Besides the Chatcolet bridge, the only other swing bridge in the state is owned by the Camas Prairie Railnet and spans the Clearwater River.

The bridge at Kamiah was installed around 1900 and opened only one time - to confirm that it worked, Camas Prairie chief engineer Jim Morehouse said.

The swinging feature wasn’t needed because big boats did not go that far upstream - except one, a paddlewheeler out to prove it could be done.

Another swing bridge was built across the Clearwater at Lewiston in 1906, Morehouse said.

In 1975, after construction of Lower Granite Dam turned the river into a reservoir, the bridge was converted to a lift span. It operates daily.