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Bonneville Dam and Bridge of the Gods, Columbia River, circa 1937

Subjects
Aerial Views & PanoramasBridges & DamsPower & Water Works
Card type
Linen
Date
c. 1937 (Linen)
Front of Bonneville Dam and Bridge of the Gods, Columbia River, circa 1937, c. 1937 linen postcard
Front
Back of Bonneville Dam and Bridge of the Gods, Columbia River, circa 1937, c. 1937 linen postcard
Back

About this postcard

Aerial view looking east over Bonneville Dam, with the spillway and powerhouse in the foreground and the Bridge of the Gods crossing the Columbia River in the distance. Steep forested hillsides and a terraced shoreline flank the water. Completed in 1937, the dam was a New Deal public works project on the Columbia between Washington and Oregon. Its locks opened a navigable route for ocean vessels 187 miles inland to The Dalles, and its fish ladders were among the costliest parts of the design. The spillway and power plant made the dam a major example of Depression-era engineering.

Postcard Details

Message

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PublisherWesley Andrews Co.
BONNEVILLE DAM, LOOKING EAST TOWARD BRIDGE-OF-THE-GODS, COLUMBIA RIVER BETWEEN WASHINGTON AND OREGON Bonneville Dam, 42 miles east of Portland, Ore.—Cost $32,200,000. Capacity of spillway 1,600,000 cubic feet per second. Power Plants will develop 600,000 H. P. Cost of fish ladders $2,500,000. This dam will make navigation possible for ocean vessels 187 miles inland to The Dalles, Oregon.—Dam completed 1937.
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Postcard record

PublisherWesley Andrews Co.
Series809
ConditionVery good
Place mentionedBonneville Dam, OR
Place mentionedThe Dalles, OR
PublisherWesley Andrews Co., Portland, OR
NotesLinen-textured stock with cream border; Curt Teich vertical stock number 5A-H1461 printed vertically at right. No postmark or stamp present. Divided-back linen card with C.T. Art Colortone / Wesley Andrews Co. imprint; photo credit BRUBAKER AERIAL SURVEYS, PORTLAND, ORE.; printed descriptive text about Bonneville Dam on the message side. Dealer pencil mark "#59" at lower right; no handwriting otherwise.

Cite this card

Bonneville Dam and Bridge of the Gods, Columbia River, circa 1937, postcard, c. 1937. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/bonneville-dam-and-bridge-of-the-gods-columbia-river-circa-1. Accessed November 2, 2026.