Cascade Locks and Columbia River Highway map and drawing collection, 1931-1938

The Columbia River Highway was one of the earlier cliff-face roads, using modern construction technology for its time. It was the first modern highway built in the Pacific Northwest and is the oldest scenic highway in the U.S. Samuel Hill and Samuel Lancaster designed and executed the highway’s plan. Construction began in 1913 along the Columbia River to build the highway, which was completed in 1922. Lancaster took extra measures to make sure that the highway conform to the landscape, making walls, bridges and designed landscape around the roads fit into the natural landscape of the area. The highway also connected Portland to the other areas along the Columbia River and beyond.

By the 1930s, the highway was showing signs of aging from the wear of speeding cars and trucks. In 1933, Bonneville Dam was built to generate electricity and provide flood control. Soon afterward, the highway was realigned from Bonneville Dam to Cascade Locks.