{"nrhp_refnum":"82004845","name":"Tower Bridge","other_names":["M Street Bridge","Capitol Avenue Bridge"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"CA 275 across Sacramento River","address_restricted":false,"city":"Sacramento","county":"Sacramento County","state":"CA","lat":38.571614030000035,"lon":-121.50811098199995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-06-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel vertical lift bridge carrying State Highway 275 across the Sacramento River between Sacramento and Yolo counties, California, built 1934-1936 by contractor A. Teichert & Son, Inc. for the Division of Highways to replace the earlier M Street Bridge.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is significant for its restrained Streamlined Moderne design, seen in its sheathed towers and concrete pylons, and for engineering features such as parallel tower legs and a lightweight concrete deck developed for the San Francisco Bay Bridge. It was the first and only vertical lift span on the California Highway System when completed. It also won national recognition in 1936 and long served as the gateway to the State capitol.","narrative":"Tower Bridge is a steel vertical lift bridge that carries State Highway 275 over the Sacramento River, linking Sacramento and Yolo counties. Built between 1934 and 1936 by A. Teichert & Son, Inc., it replaced the 1911-12 M Street Bridge, which was structurally sound but slow to open and too narrow for traffic. The new bridge originally carried the Sacramento Northern Railway on its centerline, with traffic lanes on each side. Its design team in the state Bridge Department sheathed the lift towers in steel plate and added concrete pylons, producing a restrained Streamlined Moderne look at the approach to the State capitol. Engineering details include parallel tower legs and a lightweight welded deck developed for the San Francisco Bay Bridge. When finished, it was the only vertical lift bridge on the state highway system, and in 1936 it won second place in a national steel construction competition. The railroad tracks were removed in 1963, and repainting in the mid-1970s changed its color.","period_of_significance":"1934-1936","architect_builder":"A. Teichert & Son, Inc. (contractor); designed by the Bridge Department of the Division of Highways with the aid of the State Architect","architectural_style":"Streamlined Moderne","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as occupied, in excellent condition and altered: railroad tracks were removed in 1963 and the bridge was repainted in the mid-1970s.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.72927-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/82004845.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004845/402b203a72-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004845/402b203a72-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Michael Grindstaff of Sacramento, CA, edited by Fir0002","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tower_Bridge_Sacramento_edit.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Michael Grindstaff of Sacramento, CA, edited by Fir0002</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tower_Bridge_Sacramento_edit.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860676","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_Bridge_(Sacramento,_California)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1027362"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/sacramento-county/tower-bridge-82004845/"}