It initially served as a pontoon bridge transporting U.S. Army jeeps and evacuating citizens caught in the crossfire during the Liberation of Manila.

[2] There were plans for a new bridge to connect the Mendiola route to Malacañang Palace was made even before the emergence of World War II.

[2] The pontoon bridge stood for several decades after World War II despite the construction materials used to build it.

To commemorate the 103rd birth anniversary of Apolinario Mabini on July 22, 1967, President Ferdinand Marcos issued Proclamation No.

[2] In 2014, the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) recommended that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) change the existing road signs to read Mabini Bridge as a fitting contribution to the Mabini Sesquicentennial.