DEDICATING THE CHIEF JOHN ROSS BRIDGE
(Editor’s note: Second of two parts)
The need for a second bridge across the Tennessee River in Chattanooga was discussed for almost a decade. Legislation had been introduced and approved in the U.S. Congress. The War Department worked with engineers to design a bridge that would facilitate river traffic, support economic expansion and allow easy access to Hill City on the north shore.
In early January 1914, Esquire Donalson appeared before the Hamilton County Court to introduce a resolution authorizing the issuance of $500,000, 5%, 30-year bonds. Judge M.M. Allison, representing the Chamber of Commerce and the Manufacturer’s Association, urged acceptance: “Most of us know that the Walnut Street Bridge is taxed to 50 percent more than it was originally intended … . This proves the urgency of the erection of the Market Street Bridge at once.” The resolution was approved unanimously, and construction began.
The Bridge Committee appeared before the Court in December 1916 to request an additional $200,000 for costs required by a change in construction oversight. The new funds were allocated.
Under new civil engineering leadership, the bridge began to span the river.
“Million Dollar Bridge Opened with Impressive Ceremony” blazed across the front page of the Chattanooga Daily Times on Nov. 17, 1917. The event began at the Hotel Patten with Hamilton County and City of Chattanooga officials in attendance. The leaders and excited citizens “piled into cars” and entered a parade led by a squad of police cars, Morrison’s band and a Khorasan drum corps starting at 11th and Market Streets and ending at the new bridge.
Once the procession with its hundreds of citizens arrived at the span, the dedication ceremony began with J. Read Voigt, mayor of North Chattanooga, asking the Rev. Dr. J.W Bachman to offer the invocation. Voigt returned to the podium to explain the importance of the bridge to North Shore residents and to commerce, noting that all local railroads were featuring the bridge in their advertisements as a sign of Chattanooga’s progressive stance. Chattanooga Mayor Jesse M. Littleton joined Voigt in complimenting the structure’s commission on the “magnificent bridge … that would be a source of pride for the city.”
Judge M.M. Allison, president of the Dixie Highway Association, keynoted the event. He began by spotlighting the timeliness of the construction, “as the traffic would pour into Chattanooga from the north in a few months with local traffic constantly on the increase.” Allison continued, “The shippers need relief and must look to the highways and the motor truck. Next summer will mark the opening of both the eastern division of the Dixie Highway from Detroit and Cincinnati to Chattanooga and the western division from Chicago, Indianapolis, Louisville, and Nashville. The new bridge will be used by both of these routes, over which tourists will travel by the tens of thousands each year.”
Commission Chairman Theodore King acknowledged Judge Allison’s compliments and added that it was his honor to turn the structure over to Hamilton County. Judge Will Cummings accepted “ownership” and thanked “those whose civic spirit prompted this celebration … . I believe that the public, always just and fair-minded, will appreciate the fact that the committee and the County Court have, day after day during the long period of construction, done everything within their power to secure the very best bridge that could be built.” Cummings then handed responsibility for the bridge to Hamilton County Highway Commission members who were present. He also acknowledged that Walter M. Cline was present to take “moving pictures” of the ownership transfers.
The Chattanooga Automobile Club, aided by several of the city’s civic organizations, had planned the event, led by Mark K. Wilson, C.D. Little and Fred Cantrell. Driving cars in the festive parade were W.R. Long, Emmett Newton, J.H. Alday, Mark Wilson, Charles Forstner, H.S. Smith, D. George Morgan, J. W. Krueger, C.D. Little and W.H. Weatherford.
Judge Cummings concluded the formal ceremony with a blessing: “May I [the bridge] ever stand as the link that binds the two great communities of this county.” Following those remarks, Frank Spurlock drove the first car across the Chief John Ross Bridge at 12 p.m. Chattanooga’s second bridge was now open for business, and the city’s attention turned to repairs on the stressed Walnut Street Bridge.