[2] Benton County legislators were able to secure approval to build a bridge at the site as early as 1889.

[6] Work began about June 1912 after a legal delay over funding was resolved, with Corvallis agreeing to pay a larger portion of the project.

[7] In November 1912, Corvallis residents passed a bond measure to allow for the city's portion of funding of the bridge.

[9] The span was completed in February 1913,[2] with a dedication ceremony on March 11 attended by the mayors of Corvallis and Philomath, as well as the judges for Linn and Benton counties.

[15] In the 1990s the Oregon Department of Transportation proposed options for replacing the bridge in order to alleviate traffic problems in downtown Corvallis.

[17] Linn County's Board of Commissioners supported tearing down the old bridge and simply replace it with a new wider span.

[19] Additional studies began in 2007 to determine which of the options for replacement would work best for fixing traffic issues across the river.

[20] As of 2015 the plans for a new bridge had been set aside, with improvements to the south bypass and downtown exits for OR 34, OR 20, and 99 W intended to ease congestion instead.

The future northern bypass is considered by planners to be a long-term goal, as there is no schedule and none of the estimated $250 million cost has been budgeted.

[12] A swing bridge, its main 249-foot (76 m)-span could swivel on its axis and open to allow river traffic to pass.

[9] This would turn the 24-foot (7.3 m) wide gear that had 300 teeth along its circumference and the span would spin along 42 rollers constructed of steel.

[12] Overall, the bridge was 708 feet (216 m) long and was composed of three separate steel spans that rested on concrete piers.