{"nrhp_refnum":"96001518","name":"State Highway 79 Bridge at the Red River","other_names":["Cy0282-01-005"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"OK 79 across the Red River at the OK-TX state line","address_restricted":false,"city":"Byers","county":"Clay County","state":"TX","lat":34.13299031300005,"lon":-98.09095329599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-12-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation","Engineering"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel camelback pony truss highway bridge carrying State Highway 79 over the Red River at the Oklahoma state line near Byers, Clay County, Texas, with a separate relief structure on the Texas side. Built in 1939.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge is the only surviving camelback pony truss bridge on a state highway in Texas and the fourth longest highway department truss bridge in the state, meeting Criterion C for engineering. It also meets Criterion A for transportation, because it replaced a toll bridge and gave a more direct route between Wichita Falls and Waurika, supporting regional economic development.","narrative":"Carrying State Highway 79 across the Red River between Clay County, Texas, and Jefferson County, Oklahoma, this 1939 bridge combines 21 riveted steel camelback pony truss spans of 100 feet each with steel I-beam approach spans. A 26-span relief structure sits on the Texas side. Concrete piers, abutments and railing with grooved decorative end posts complete the design. The Oklahoma Highway Commission designed it, Virginia Bridge & Iron fabricated the trusses, and Brooks & Dahlgren of Oklahoma City built it. Texas and Oklahoma highway departments jointly built the crossing to replace a toll bridge and link Wichita Falls with Waurika, helping connect oil-producing regions. It is the only camelback pony truss bridge left on a Texas state highway and the fourth longest highway department truss bridge in the state. Apart from erosion-control work along the river banks, it has changed little since construction and remains in road use.","period_of_significance":"1939","architect_builder":"Bridge Designer: Oklahoma Highway Commission; Truss Fabricator: Virginia Bridge & Iron Company of Roanoke, Virginia; Bridge Builder: Brooks & Dahlgren, Inc. of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma","architectural_style":"Other: camelback pony truss bridge","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a road bridge; erosion-control repairs since 1956 but no other major repairs, and it retains substantial integrity.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.878388-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/13/9685/40968513/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/96001518.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96001518/b338789a58-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96001518/b338789a58-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Crimsonedge34","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:State_Highway_79_Bridge_at_the_Red_River.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Crimsonedge34</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:State_Highway_79_Bridge_at_the_Red_River.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40968513","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Highway_79_Bridge_at_the_Red_River","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16900697"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/clay-county/state-highway-79-bridge-at-the-red-river-96001518/"}