Currently owned and operated by BNSF Railway,[3] it crosses an anabranch of the Columbia River known as North Portland Harbor and historically as the Oregon Slough.

[3] The Oregon Slough Railroad Bridge was built in 1906–1908 by the Northern Pacific Railway (NP) for use by the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway (SP&S), as part of construction of a new line between Vancouver, Washington and Portland.

[1] The first train crossed the span on October 23, 1908,[7] and the bridge opened for regular use in November 1908.

[2] The remainder consists of seven shorter fixed-truss spans,[2] each approximately 162 ft (49 m) in length.

[9] The bridge's swing span is opened for river traffic an average of only 12 times per month.