{"nrhp_refnum":"89000854","name":"Pacific Electric Railroad Bridge","other_names":["Gill,Irving,Bridge"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Torrance Blvd. and Bow St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Torrance","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":33.83753960000007,"lon":-118.31185423699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-07-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Engineering","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A reinforced concrete deck-arch railroad bridge crossing Torrance Boulevard at Bow Street in Torrance, Los Angeles County, California. It was designed by architect Irving Gill and built in 1913 as one of the first structures of the new city.","why_significant":"The nomination argues significance under Criterion C in community planning, architecture and engineering. It is the only unaltered structure left from the original Torrance general plan, it is the work of master architect Irving Gill, and it uses non-load-bearing decorative arches to disguise a plain girder-and-slab structure, a technique the nomination describes as highly unusual.","narrative":"Spanning Torrance Boulevard at Bow Street, this reinforced concrete bridge was built in 1913 as a gateway to the new industrial town of Torrance. Architect Irving Gill, appointed chief architect in 1912, designed it to carry Southern Pacific tracks overhead while Pacific Electric streetcars, automobiles and pedestrians passed through six arches below. It kept trains from blocking major streets and kept noise away from residential areas. The bridge is considered significant for three reasons. It is the only unaltered structure remaining from the original Torrance plan, drawn up by the Olmsted Brothers. It shows Gill's preference for simple forms and unadorned surfaces. Structurally it is a plain girder and slab bridge hidden behind decorative arched walls that carry no load, a design the nomination reports found in no other California concrete girder bridge. Changes have been minor, and the city acquired the bridge in 1986 to preserve it.","period_of_significance":"1912","architect_builder":"Gill, Irving/Pacific Electric Ry.","architectural_style":"Modern Movement; Other: Deck-arch bridge","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Minor alterations from the early 1950s (removal of telephone poles, addition of wooden guardrails); cracking from age and weather, mostly hidden by vines. The city obtained ownership in 1986 to preserve it; tracks on the bridge remain but are abandoned.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:28.300996-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/89000854.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89000854/a4545d3ea3-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89000854/a4545d3ea3-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Los Angeles","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pacific_Electric_Railroad_Bridge_(Torrance).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Los Angeles</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pacific_Electric_Railroad_Bridge_(Torrance).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859374","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Electric_Railroad_Bridge","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7122441"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/pacific-electric-railroad-bridge-89000854/"}