The ghost town of Two Guns, once a prosperous tourist stop, is near the east end of the bridge.

As settlers populated the area in the mid-1800s, the Two Guns location was recognized as a favorable place to cross the formidable Canyon Diablo; first by wagon, then later by vehicle.

[3] Travelers would follow paths which zig-zagged the canyon's embankments, and then cross the usually-dry riverbed.

That same year, Arizona State engineer Lamar Cobb selected and surveyed the Two Guns location for the construction of a bridge across Canyon Diablo.

[1] The construction contract was awarded late in 1914 to the lowest bidder for $9000, Thomas Haddock of Williams, Arizona, who used concrete and reinforcing steel supplied by the state to erect the bridge that winter.