THE COLUMBIA HIGHWAY IN OREGON 



413 



inspecting thoroughly these 

 roads, the Legislature enacted 

 the law providing for a State 

 highway engineer and a system 

 of State roads. The State High- 

 way Commission, thus created, 

 secured the services of the writer 

 as State Highway Engineer, and 

 launched an extensive road- 

 building campaign. 



No money was available for 

 the use of the department except 

 $10,000 set aside for office ex- 

 penses. A campaign of educa- 

 tion was started with the object 

 of inducing the counties to vote 

 bonds to build trunk roads under 

 the direction of the State Com- 

 mission. The first to take ad- 

 vantage of the new law was 

 Jackson County. On July 3, 

 1913, this county turned over to 

 the State Highway Department 

 the location and construction of 

 the Pacific Highway in that 

 county, and raised $500,000 

 from a bond issue for this pur- 

 pose. Counties on the Columbia 

 River were the next to feel the 

 effect of the state-wide campaign 

 for good roads. Clatsop, Colum- 

 bia, Hood River and Multnomah 



Counties raised altogether $2,335,000 for the construc- 

 tion of the Columbia Highway. On July 26, 1913, the 



ANOTHER TUNNEL AND BRIDGE 



This is on one of the lower grades of the road, about the same level as the railroad, 

 of the rock through which cuttings had to be made is apparent. 



The character 



THE BOWLBY TUNNEL 



Here the rocky side of the mountain overhangs the river and the engineers decided the safest road 

 would he through a tunnel. This was so cut that it is lighted naturally by several openings 

 through which wonderful views of the river far below may be seen. 



Board of County Commissioners of Multnomah County, 

 under the leadership of its chairman, Rufus C. Holman, 

 appointed an advisory committee 

 to advise them on matters con- 

 nected with the new departure in 

 modern road building. On Sep- 

 tember 24 the County Board 

 turned over to the State High- 

 way Department all engineering 

 connected with the Columbia 

 Highway in that county and set 

 aside $75,000 to the order of the 

 State commission for this pur- 

 pose. An Assistant State High- 

 way Engineer was placed in 

 charge of each of the different 

 units. S. C. Lancaster was As- 

 sistant Highway Engineer in 

 charge of the work in Multno- 

 mah County. Surveys were 

 made and construction started in 

 October, 1913. Twenty-two and 

 one-half miles of new road have 

 been completed to date at an ap- 

 proximate cost of one million 

 three hundred thousand dollars. 

 This amount includes the cost of 



