At the turn of the last millennium, the Anasazi Indians used a large network
of formal roads radiating from Chaco Canyon to outlying sites. In the sixteenth
century, the Spanish advanced a military campaign north from Mexico City up the
Rio Grande. They maintained military and supply routes to remote outposts and
missions, but prohibited trade outside their territory. This changed
dramatically in 1821 when Mexico won independence from Spain. People and
supplies arrived on overland routes, leaving wagon wheel ruts that are still
visible today. Bridges, however, are notably absent along the Santa Fe Trail and
other historic routes.
In 1879 the railroad pulled into the Territory of New Mexico, making
permanent bridges a mandate for commerce. They required financial backing,
studied engineering, supervised labor and perennial maintenance. Heavy wood or
steel trusses were hauled in, and anchored in massive abutments to span dry
washes hardly chin deep. What appeared to be a profligate use of good wood and
valuable labor was directed to improbable, remote construction sites. The local
residents must have been perplexed. And some people, heading west today for
Anaheim, may share this point of view.
