“It represents a way of life, it represents a community that comes together,” Mayor Roy Lindsey said.
The construction which started in 2017, was the first major facelift since it was built in 1931.
“It was directing people basically to the Redwood Empire Route which the northernmost point was Grants Pass and the southernmost point was Golden Bridge,” Ward Warren, chairman of the city’s Historical Building and Sites Commission said.
The nearly 90-year-old bridge has new lamps, rails, and is ADA compliant.
Cars from the 1930s and 1940s were on display with a musical band all to commemorate the event.
“The vehicles, the classic cars we had here today were of the vintage of the period that would have been driving across the bridge at the time,” Warren said.
The original sign went into the ground in 1941. Many Grants Pass residents see the historic sign as an iconic symbol for home.
“It’s so beautiful,” Jamie Smith, Grants Pass resident said. “Its a sign of knowing that’s home.”
“These are all things that are symbolic of our history that we don’t want to go away,” Warren said. We want to preserve and protect them for generations to come.”
The bridge crosses the Rogue River on 6th St. It’s listed on the national register of historic places.
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