Submitted to : Oregon Department of Transportation

7.6 Post-World War II Highway Developments (1946-1956)

Government

With much of the construction of US 101 largely completed by the onset of World War II, government related activity during the World War II period was minimal. Once completed, the Oregon Coast Highway system was managed jointly by the State Highway Department and U.S. Forest Service, and with the largest projects already funded, the system’s needs shifted to maintenance routines and minor reroutes in addition to improving access to state parks. State Highway Engineer, R.H. Baldock, appointed in 1932, supervised all coast highway transportation projects during this period. Baldock served until August 15, 1956 and, following his departure, W. C. Williams was appointed highway engineer and remained in this role until 1961.

A post-World War II map of Forest Highways shows four areas on the coast highway managed by the U.S. Forest Service where the highway passes through the Siuslaw National Forest. This included a small section between Neskowin and Lincoln City, the large section between Newport and Reedsport, a short section south of Reedsport to Hauser, and from Port Orford to Gold Beach.⁶²²

In 1947, the Oregon Legislature authorized the state throughway system to designate continual highway segments as a “method of protecting the integrity of the highway system and to provide for a safer and more viable highway system.”⁶²³ The Oregon Transportation Commission enacted the system in November 1948 and designated throughways throughout the state. These highways were surveyed to exempt segments that contained concentrations of ten or more commercial businesses in any one mile stretch of road.⁶²⁴ The commission designated the highway from Astoria to Coquille, except for the main population centers along the route, including Astoria, Twin Rocks/Ocean Lake, Garibaldi, Tillamook, Beaver, Hebo, Cloverdale, Ocean Lake to Cutler City (now Lincoln City), Lincoln Beach, Depoe Bay, Agate Beach, Newport, Seal Rock, Waldport, Yachats, Florence, Glenada, Gardiner, Reedsport, North Bend, Coos Bay, and Coquille. Highway Straightline Charts for each throughway were created at the time of this legislation.⁶²⁵ In February 1953, the Highway Commission completed the Coast Highway’s Throughway designation by defining the remainder of the highway from Coquille to the California border as a Throughway. ⁶²⁶ Later, in March 1962, the Commission also designated the newly completed Astoria Bridge - South Approach Ramp Spur as a Throughway within the Coast Highway system.

In 1947, the state legislature repealed the 1913 law enacted by Governor Oswald West which declared the Oregon beach a state highway. The legislature then reenacted a revised version that now prohibited the State Land Board from disposing of the ‘shore of the ocean’, as it had been doing since 1874.

In 1947, state law officially established the State Parks Division within the Highway Department.⁶²⁷ By 1949, the Parks Division had organized field offices to manage park operations and designated regional supervisors. Regional offices were opened in the Willamette Valley, North Coast, South Coast, Central and Eastern Oregon. During the 1960s, a sixth regional office opened in Roseburg and served Southern Oregon for a short time period.⁶²⁸

Samuel H. Boardman retired from his position as Superintendent of the Oregon Parks Department in 1950 after 21 years of active service.⁶²⁹ Chester “Chet” H. Armstrong, Boardman’s assistant superintendent at the time, was appointed as the new superintendent. Armstrong was born in Newberg, Oregon and grew up in Salem, where he attended Willamette University and later Oregon State College.⁶³⁰ He worked briefly for the Oregon State Highway Department before enlisting in the Armed Services. Following World War II, Armstrong returned to the Highway Department. There, he supervised park betterment work in eastern Oregon as a district maintenance superintendent and worked as assistant superintendent under Boardman following World War II before being promoted to State Parks superintendent on July 1, 1950.⁶³¹ Armstrong served this role until 1960. During his retirement, Armstrong documented the state park system’s history in Oregon State Parks: History, 1917-1963.

In 1955, Governor Paul Patterson approved a State Park Study and Advisory Committee. William M. Tugman from the Highway Commission’s Advisory Committee on Travel Information headed the State Park Study Committee with other members of the travel information group. The study ascertained the needs, and recommended goals and policies, for Oregon park development. The Committee released the findings in 1956 in “A 20 Year Program for Oregon State Parks,” which became commonly known as the “Tugman Report.”⁶³² Most notable of the findings was a recommendation to form a permanent State Parks advisory committee.⁶³³

Following the major highway reroute between Coos Bay and Bandon in 1957, the state amended the route through legislative action. The Act redefined the Oregon Coast Highway route:

The Oregon Coast Highway runs from a junction with the Columbia River Highway in Astoria, southerly via Seaside, Cannon Beach, Rockaway, Tillamook, Newport, Florence, Coos Bay, Bandon and Gold Beach to the Oregon - California state line.⁶³⁴

This route designation marks the end of the historic period, but also reflects Coast Highway’s historically dynamic evolution. The present highway route, although altered following the historic period, still corresponds to the legal description outlined in the 1957 Act.

Transportation

Much of the coast highway work during the post-World War II era focused on improving highway conditions. Several segments were rerouted to replace “obsolete, dangerous, and congested” highway sections. Roads were widened and additional lanes were constructed on ascending grades to reduce congestion by providing an extra lane for slow moving vehicles.⁶³⁵ Slide conditions were corrected with new roadbed, and surfaces were upgraded to bituminous paving.⁶³⁶ Older bridges were replaced with new, streamlined concrete deck bridges. The highway alignment was fine-tuned through several rerouting projects ranging in magnitude from short 5- mile segments to larger projects consisting of new, more direct highway sections over 20 miles in length. These new alignments provided straighter, more direct routes, increased coastal views from the highway, and reduced traffic congestion. Several communities originally located along the coast highway were bypassed by the new routes, including Otter Crest, Coquille, and Coaledo.

In 1946 a team of landscape architects joined the state park organization to engage in roadside beautification projects throughout the state. On the Coast Highway, beautification efforts focused on the newly constructed highway segment near Oceanlake (now Lincoln City) completed in 1946 after nearly a decade of planning and construction work.⁶³⁷ The team planted shrubbery in the center median strips to minimize pedestrians crossing the highway at unsafe locations.⁶³⁸

Road Widening

During the Post-World War II period, construction crews increased highway widths using various strategies to address traffic congestion issues. Four-lane divided highways became the modern standard in urban areas, as did additional third lanes on ascending grades for slow moving vehicles.

An early widening project in Waldport, completed during the 1947-48 biennium, accomplished drainage improvements, increased local parking, and accelerated safe traffic flow through a previously congested area.⁶³⁹ In Garibaldi, a small section of road was widened and paved with asphaltic concrete to provide space for local use without congesting through traffic.⁶⁴⁰ Third Avenue in Tillamook was widened to 42 feet between new curbs, and new concrete asphalt replaced the older pavement.⁶⁴¹ In 1950, between North Bend and Coos Bay, crews graded and paved a 4-lane, divided highway with 5-inch asphaltic concrete.⁶⁴² A 1.02 mile section in Port Orford was widened to 64 feet between new curbs, and paved with a 3-inch lift of asphaltic concrete. The road encompassed four 12-foot traffic lanes and an 8-foot parking buffer on either side of the road.⁶⁴³ In Florence, a 0.63 mile section was widened to four lanes and paved with asphaltic concrete, complete with refuge islands for left turns and 9-foot parallel parking areas on each side of the roadway.⁶⁴⁴ At Bunker Hill, just south of Coos Bay, a 0.55-mile segment was also widened to a 4-lane divided highway and surfaced with asphaltic concrete.⁶⁴⁵

During the 1953-54 biennium, a half mile of road was widened near Warrenton with an extra lane installed at the ascending grade to speed up overall traffic flow.⁶⁴⁶ Similarly, a third lane was added on Glenada Hill just south of Florence during the 1955-56 biennium to provide an additional lane for slow moving vehicles.⁶⁴⁷ The highway between First and Second Streets in Cannon Beach was widened to 39 feet and resurfaced with new pavement.⁶⁴⁸

Between Brookings and the California State Line, the state paved a 5.64-mile section with asphaltic concrete to provide a 22-foot pavement with 4-foot shoulders. The project involved 0.83 miles of revised line and improved grade, as well as widened roadbed.⁶⁴⁹

The BPR completed their own Forest Road Project during the 1951-52 biennium, widening a 2.32 segment between Port Orford and Rocky Point. The project increased the roadbed width and provided a new rock base and oil wearing surface.⁶⁵⁰

Paving and Other Minor Projects

A selective project list from the Oregon State Highway Commission biennial reports exemplifies the multitude of minor re-grading and surfacing projects completed during the post-World War II period:

• 
  During the 1949-50 biennum, the Summit-Tolovana Park Section near Cannon Beach was graded and surfaced with macadam. Additional grading and surfacing was completed on Nehalem Hill.⁶⁵¹
  
• 
  During the 1951-52 biennium, 1.10 miles of grading, rock base and bituminous macadam surfacing was completed on the Big Creek section, providing a continuous 22-foot bituminous macadam surface between Agate Beach and Newport.⁶⁵²
  
• 
  A 0.3 mile section was re-graded southwest of Riverton in Coos County during the 1951-52 biennium. State workers surfaced and oiled the road at a higher elevation to prevent overflow caused by high waters.⁶⁵³
  
• 
  Between Waldport and Yachats, the highway was re-oiled for eight miles to smooth and reinforce the existing surfacing during the 1953-54 biennium.⁶⁵⁴
  
• 
  A bridge crossing Deer Creek near the Otis Junction in Lincoln County was replaced with culvert pipe and earth fill during the 1955-56 biennium.⁶⁵⁵
  

Rerouting

Highway relocation was a major trend of the post-World War II period. Many highway adjustments were minor as they were often associated with the straightening of sharp curves or the use of adjacent land to improve the roadbed. These minor reroutes resulted in the abandonment or elimination of small highway segments. Major highway relocations occurred as well, which excluded large highway segments from the Coast Highway system and strongly impacted communities bypassed by the new route. In several cases, the excluded highway segments were transferred to county jurisdiction for use as public county roads. Table 7.6.1 outlines the highway section, county and date for eighteen abandonment resolutions that occurred during the post-World War II period. Thirty more highway abandonment resolutions passed after the period of significance, between 1957 and 2006 (See Appendix E for complete list of jurisdictional transfers from 1936-2006).⁶⁵⁶ A selective summary of several post-World War II rerouting projects for each coastal county describes the most significant highway relocations completed during the historic period.

Clatsop County

Cannon Beach

During the historic period, a significant highway segment relocation occurred near Cannon Beach on the Circle Bridge – Summit and Summit – Hug Point Sections. The projects significantly widened and straightened the area’s highway alignment and bypassed the original route through Cannon Beach. The 1947-48 biennial reported that the work included new alignment of 1.28 miles of a bituminous macadam surfaced roadway near the center of the Cannon Beach Junction – Cannon Beach Section of highway, replacing the old, narrow and twisty road which had been inadequate and hazardous.⁶⁵⁷ The new highway and road connections were paved with asphaltic concrete on top of a heavy rock base. ⁶⁵⁸ The state abandoned eight sections of the original highway and transferred them to Clatsop County for use as public county roads. In July 1946, the project began, the transfer agreement was made and, following completion of the highway relocation in May 1951, the jurisdictional transfer occurred. In 1952, the highway relocation around Cannon Beach was extended south another 2.38 miles. Work crews graded and surfaced the new alignment between the Ecola Park Connection and Sunset Boulevard in Cannon Beach. Crews also installed a reinforced concrete structure to separate through traffic on the main highway from local traffic accessing a new subdivision near the park.⁶⁵⁹

Seaside

In November 1954, the Oregon State Highway Commission approved the relocation of Coast Highway through Seaside (see plan drawing, etc). ⁶⁶⁰ The former highway, which used Holladay Drive through the city, would be replaced with Roosevelt Drive, which ran parallel to the railroad. One month later, the commission adopted Roosevelt Drive into the highway system. ⁶⁶¹

Tillamook County

Tillamook – Pleasant Valley

In 1946, the Highway Commission approved survey resolutions for the Tillamook – Pleasant Valley Section in Tillamook County. The reroute revised the highway alignment near the Naval Air Station by widening the road and straightening a sharp curve.⁶⁶² A 1949 sketch map shows the existing and proposed highway alignment from Tillamook’s south end to a location north of Pleasant Valley. The new route featured four straight sections that zigzagged through the landscape in contrast to the previous alignment’s undulating route, but retained the straight alignment for the segment adjacent to the U.S. Naval Airbase near the center of the section. A 5.75 mile section was graded and paved with a 5-inch lifted asphaltic concrete pavement. The project involved two major line changes, widening and resurfacing portions of old pavement, and the construction of four bridges, six concrete cattle passes, and one concrete box culvert.⁶⁶³ The 1949 sketch map indicates that the new bridges were constructed under separate contracts over the Trask River, the Tillamook River in two locations, and Fawcett Creek. The bridges appear nearly identical, each having a solid, low concrete wall with minimal vertical detailing and an elevated concrete base. Each cattle crossing is notated as a 5’ x 7’ “Stock Pass” and “Farm Xing,” and consists of square concrete openings that are barely visible when traveling along the highway. The crossings provided safe cattle passage for farms that owned property on both sides of the highway, and would be maintained by the state as long as the farm property remained under individual ownership.⁶⁶⁴ The abandoned highway portions transferred to the City of Tillamook and Tillamook County in December 1950 following the project’s completion.⁶⁶⁵

In August 1951, the Highway Commission adopted a survey resolution for the Bay City – Kilchis River Section.⁶⁶⁶ The new route was a 2.32-mile road section between Bay City and a point about two miles north of Tillamook that ran west of the old obsolete, circuitous route. ⁶⁶⁷ In October 1951, the State Highway Commission agreed to transfer the abandoned highway sections to Tillamook County. The county retained portions of the former highway for public use as a county road. New construction included two lanes of asphaltic concrete pavement and six bridges built under a separate contract.⁶⁶⁸ These simply-designed concrete bridges cross minor creeks or created cattle passes for farms that owned property on both sides of the highway.⁶⁶⁹ They nearly identical bridges consist of solid, low concrete walls with minimal vertical detailing and elevated concrete bases. The new relocated highway section opened for public travel on October 30, 1953.

Lincoln County

Otter Crest

The Otter Crest realignment, completed during the 1955-1956 biennium, eliminated nearly 5 miles of highway along one of the most scenic stretches of the Oregon coastline, from Depoe Bay south over Otter Crest. The new alignment, located predominantly east of the original route, widened to two lanes with a third lane added for passing on ascending grades. The biennial report noted that the new road replaced a section of “very crooked and narrow highway,” which included the 1927 Rocky Creek Bridge.⁶⁷⁰ The state intended to retain the Old Highway or “loop road” under state park ownership.⁶⁷¹ Now known as the county-managed Otter Crest Loop, this segment continues to convey the feeling of the original highway route, despite its diminished integrity of association. Ray Allen, author of Oregon Coast Bridges, describes the experience:

Driving this stretch of road offers a drive back through time. Heading south on the loop from the junction with US 101, the motorist slows to cross the narrow Rocky Creek Bridge, passes by the small community of Miroco, then heads up the northern slope of Cape Foulweather through a sylvan glen replete with tight curves and steep, unguarded precipices looming just beyond the asphalt roadway. Although only a few miles in length, Otter Crest Loop allows motorists a chance to capture for a moment the experience of traveling the Oregon Coast Highway in its early years.⁶⁷²

Kernville - Newport

Following World War II, the Highway Commission initiated a long range plan to relocate and modernize the highway between Kernville and Newport. The Miner Creek – Agate Beach Section, completed during the 1947-48 biennium, was the first completed project under this plan. The new route paralleled the coast line for most of its length, “affording hitherto unobtainable vistas of the ocean and opening many roadside recreational possibilities for development.”⁶⁷³ The construction included a 22-foot bituminous macadam travelway, flanked with wide shoulders and supported on a 16-inch base of rock materials. The 4.27-mile completed section reduced the overall highway distance by a half mile.⁶⁷⁴ The project continued into the early 1950s. An article published in Pacific Builder and Engineer in 1953 features the project, describing the work completed by Funderburk & Stoen Construction Co., the general contractor from Seattle, and Earthmovers, Inc. from Astoria noted that:

The new alignment is being built 100’ or more uphill, above the present highway. It will result in not only a better view of the ocean, but also an opportunity for the auto driver to enjoy the view. The construction men aren’t too interested in the view. They’re busy highballing rigs up and down tote roads that run as steep as 40 degree grades, trying to keep rubber-tired unites pulling in mud that gives crawler tractor quite a bit of trouble. The earth moving is made difficult by the nature of the soil, sandy silt and loam which is extremely slippery, very sticky and never seems to dry out.⁶⁷⁵

The project also included a box culvert constructed by Lockyear & White from Longview, Washington, and asphalt paving installed by Acme Paving Co. from Eugene.

In 1949, the Highway Commission adopted a new route near Yaquina Bay in the Newport – South Beach Section. Abandoned portions transferred to Lincoln County for public use as a county road in July 1949. The route included recreational land tracks on either side of Yaquina Bay for what is noted as Yaquina Park (now Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site) and South Beach Wayside or “Minor Park” (now South Beach State Park). One of the abandoned units led to the former Yaquina Bay ferry landing on Sand Spit.

In 1950, 2.04 miles of highway were relocated between Agate Beach and Newport to closely parallel the coastline. ⁶⁷⁶ The route followed Cape Street through Newport with the approach into town moved slightly inland. The widened route though Newport eliminated several lots within the city. The road was graded and surfaced with bituminous macadam in 1950. ⁶⁷⁷ Following the project’s completion in August 1952, the state transferred the excluded highway portions to Lincoln County’s jurisdiction to be maintained as service roads for local residents.

A segment near Gleneden Beach within the Siletz Bay – Depoe Bay Section was relocated in 1956-57, following a survey adopted by the Highway Commission in 1952. ⁶⁷⁸ The new alignment generally tracked the former route, but used a wider right-of-way. The abandoned portions were transferred to Lincoln County for public use as a county road.

Lane County

No significant rerouting projects occurred in Lane County during the post-World War II period.

Douglas/Coos County

Reedsport – Coos Bay

During the 1950s, a substantial portion of highway between Reedsport in Douglas County and Coos Bay in Coos County was rerouted to bypass the curving inland route to the east between Hauser and Russell Point.⁶⁷⁹ In 1950, the Highway Commission approved the nearly 30-mile section, noting that that the new route would substantially realign and straighten the highway on a wider right-of-way.⁶⁸⁰ In July 1951, the Highway Commission adopted survey resolutions for these areas.⁶⁸¹ In 1952, the Highway Department acquired a parcel of land on Kentuck County Road near Hauser in Coos County for use as a rock quarry during construction. The Bureau of Public Roads contributed to the realignment by constructing an 8.44-mile forest road segment in 1954. The forest road passed through the Siuslaw National Forest from Lakeside to Hauser and included a new concrete deck bridge over Ten Mile Creek.⁶⁸² The bridge crosses the railroad as well as the original highway route, which is now Sherry Barbie Lane. Further south, the new alignment had to cross Hayes Inlet before reconnecting with the original route in Glasgow and crossing the Conde B. McCullough Bridge over Coos Bay into North Bend. The Hayes Inlet Slough Bridge, constructed in 1953, was a reinforced concrete deck girder bridge built on timber pile trestles (this bridge was replaced in 2001).⁶⁸³ The 1953-54 Biennial Report commented on the project’s completion, stating that the new 21.4-mile section of highway was reconstructed with asphaltic concrete and replacing 25.07 miles of previous highway. ⁶⁸⁴ The project consisted of eight separate contracts, which involved grading and paving small segments, building bridges, and constructing box culverts.⁶⁸⁵

Figure . Ten Mile Creek Bridge drawing by H. L. Spooner, Bureau of Public Roads, 1952 (courtesy of ODOT Library and Research Center)

Following the project’s completion, the state agreed to transfer six eliminated segments between the Douglas County Line and Glasgow to Coos County for public use as a county road. These portions included two segments near Clear Lake and Butterfield Lake in the Siuslaw National Forest, a segment near Hauser where the old and new highway alignments crossed the North Slough, and a segment along Hayes Inlet before the original highway entered Glasgow.

Gardiner

In April 1956, the Highway Commission and Douglas County agreed on the highway relocation and jurisdictional transfer of two small segments between Gardiner and the Oregon Dunes. The 5.5-mile section of narrow, twisted highway was reconstructed on a new alignment that conformed to modern standards.⁶⁸⁶ The section was completed and opened for traffic in May 1956.

Coos County

Coos Bay

In Coos Bay, the relocation created a divided highway through the city, with southbound traffic traveling on Broadway and northbound traffic on Front Street. Broadway was widened to a 4-lane travelway with 8-foot parallel parking on each side. The improvement required 1.12 miles of new highway roadbed and construction of 0.43 miles of railroad roadbed. The improved surface consisted of a 2-inch asphalt concrete atop a 6-inch Portland cement concrete base. On Front Street, crews installed a 5-inch asphaltic concrete pavement on a new rock base.⁶⁸⁷ In April 1949, the Highway Commission abandoned two portions of the original highway route through town. One abandoned segment was a plank surface road that followed Broadway and turned at Kruse Avenue. Where the new alignment curved from First Street and crossed the Coalbank Slough on a new bridge, a portion of Newport Avenue was also eliminated. This segment included an elevated walk and roadway on a plank surface, and a bascule draw bridge. The new right-of-way contained two buildings owned by Gehrke Cabinet Works and several residential lots. In the 1990s, the Highway Commission moved the northbound route west of Front Street.

Coos Bay - Coquille

In the early 1950s, several small projects completed between Coos Bay and Coquille were designed toe ensure conformance with modern highway standards. Nearly 16 miles were relocated based on three Coos County survey resolutions adopted in 1950. ⁶⁸⁸ The new, four-lane alignment, including a large portion on divided roadbed, was constructed with a heavily graded road surface topped with five inches of lifted asphaltic concrete pavement.⁶⁸⁹ A new bridge was necessary to cross the Coquille River. Contractor Carl M. Halverson Inc. constructed the Bullard’s Bridge in 1952 for $626,516.⁶⁹⁰ The structure spans the Coquille River and has a steel through truss with a vertical lift. ⁶⁹¹ The 702-foot bridge features multiple spans of reinforced-concrete deck girders, two steel through trusses, and an 80-foot vertical lift steel deck girder.⁶⁹² The bridge is only one of two surviving steel vertical lift spans along the Oregon Coast Highway.⁶⁹³

In August 1952, following the alignment’s completion through Coquille, the Highway Commission designated the Coquille city streets as part of the highway.⁶⁹⁴ About halfway between Delmar and Coaledo, the new highway crossed the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks on a new reinforced concrete structure designed to eliminate the dangers of the old crossing at grade.⁶⁹⁵ At a small section between Bunker Hill and Delmar, crews re-graded the highway, installed a new rock base and asphaltic concrete paving, and widened bridges and box culverts.⁶⁹⁶ New bridges were constructed over Shingle Horse Slough and Davis Slough. The Biennial Report noted that the work greatly improved the “most heavily travelled section” of the Oregon Coast Highway in Southern Oregon.⁶⁹⁷ However, this work would quickly become irrelevant to the Coast Highway after the major 1956-60 realignment between Coos Bay and Bandon and transfer of this route to the Coquille Bandon Highway No. 244 (State Route 42S).

Coos Bay – Bandon

Between 1956 and 1960, Coast Highway was rerouted between Davis Slough just south of Coos Bay and Bandon. The original route, which winded inland through Coquille, was bypassed with a more direct route from Coos Bay to Bandon, reducing about 10 miles from the previously 28-mile route. This route diverted from the original highway alignment about seven miles south of Coos Bay near the Davis Slough crossing, with a new bridge on the more westerly new alignment. The highway featured long stretches of straight road with some curves. After crossing Sevenmile Creek, the highway took a direct southwest route to Bullards Beach State Park, curving south to cross the Coquille River and approach the north end of Bandon. The route reconnected with the existing highway as it passed through Bandon near First Street and Michigan Avenue. While the highway section through the city retains characteristics of the historic right-of-way, the 18 mile segment north of Bandon is not particularly representative of this time period as few features from the immediate post-World War II era are readily identifiable

In 1957 the commission officially amended the highway route, designating the old portions between Bandon and Davis Slough as part of the Coquille – Bandon Highway No. 244 (State Route 42S) and the Coos Bay – Roseburg Highway No. 35.⁶⁹⁸

Curry County

Port Orford – Wedderburn

Several small highway relocations occurred between Port Orford and the Rogue River at Wedderburn during the mid-1950s, resulting in approximately 25 miles of new highway along the southern Coast. The realignments run roughly parallel the original route, retaining the historic setting. Several segments of the abandoned portions remain as county roads and include some of the highway’s original bridge structures, allowing travelers to enjoy the early highway experience along these roads.

A 5.14-mile stretch of highway in a rural area between Port Orford and Rocky Point was relocated during the 1953-1954 biennium. When the resolution was adopted in June 1949, construction had not occurred, but the Highway Commission and Public Roads Administration intended to transfer two substantial portions of the old highway to Curry County for local use as a county road.⁶⁹⁹ The new alignment followed the ocean’s edge and provided a more scenic route.⁷⁰⁰ It was situated between the old highway and the ocean, improving the scenic coastal views. The section was designed with two lanes and additional lanes for slow moving traffic on the ascent. New bridges were constructed over Brush Creek, Reinehart Creek, Myrtle Creek and Mussel Creek.⁷⁰¹ The Reinhart Creek Bridge, constructed in 1954, is a 356-foot steel deck truss bridge located near Humbug Mountain, a unique bridge type along the Coast Highway.⁷⁰²

During the 1955-56 biennium, five miles of highway were reconstructed between Frankport (now Sisters Rock State Park) and Greggs Creek. The project realigned the road to the west side of the old route. This road was reconstructed as two lanes with a third lane added where required. Crews constructed a new viaduct and a new bridge over Euchre Creek.⁷⁰³ The original Euchre Creek Bridge remained on the excluded highway alignment.

Plans were made to reroute a nine-mile section through the Greggs Creek – Wedderburn Section, but this work was apparently not completed during the period of significance.⁷⁰⁴ The eliminated highway portions were abandoned in June 1965 and the new highway bypassed the communities of Ophir and Nesika. The relocated alignment that runs parallel to portions of the original right-of-way are maintained as county roads, specifically Ophir Road, Nesika Road, Old Coast Road, and Wedderburn Loop.

Table . Jurisdictional Transfers of Abandoned Highway Segments, 1946-1957

Section Containing Abandoned Portion	County	Abandonment Resolution Date
Ingersoll Avenue – Johnson Avenue	Coos	2/4/1947
Miner Creek – Agate Beach	Lincoln	9/13/1948
Circle Bridge – Summit (Necanicum River – Hug Point)	Clatsop	9/13/1948
Glasgow – Hauser	Coos	11/3/1948
Gardiner	Douglas	9/21/1949
Delmar – Coaledo	Coos	9/28/1950
Coaledo – Chrome Plant	Coos	9/28/1950
Tillamook – Pleasant Valley	Tillamook	12/19/1950
Port of Newport (Newport Bridge)	Lincoln	4/13/1951
Summit – Hug Point	Clatsop	5/24/1951
Agate Beach – Newport	Lincoln	10/20/1952
Port Orford – Rocky Point	Curry	9/24/1953
Reedsport – Winchester Bay	Douglas	1/21/1954
Bay City – Kilchis River	Tillamook	1/21/1954
Siletz Bay – Miner Creek	Lincoln	10/28/1954
Douglas County Line – Glasgow	Coos	1/1/1955
Elbow Lake – Gardiner	Douglas	4/26/1956
Siletz Bay – Depoe Bay	Lincoln	8/8/1957