Copper River Highway
Encyclopedia
The Copper River Highway extends 49.5 miles (79.7 km) from Cordova
Cordova, Alaska
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,454 people, 958 households, and 597 families residing in the city. The population density was 40.0 per square mile . There are 1,099 housing units at an average density of 17.9 per square mile...

 along the old railbed of the Copper River and Northwestern Railway
Copper River and Northwestern Railway
The Copper River and Northwestern Railway was a railroad built by the Kennecott Corporation between 1907 and 1911 to take copper ore from Kennicott, Alaska to Cordova, Alaska, a distance of . The railroad was built by thousands of workers, who laid tracks around glaciers, across canyons and...

. Construction began in 1945, and was originally intended to link Cordova
Cordova, Alaska
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,454 people, 958 households, and 597 families residing in the city. The population density was 40.0 per square mile . There are 1,099 housing units at an average density of 17.9 per square mile...

 with the state highway system at Chitina
Chitina, Alaska
Chitina is a census-designated place in Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 123.-Geography:Chitina is located at ....

. The Million Dollar Bridge
Million Dollar Bridge
The Miles Glacier Bridge, also known as the Million Dollar Bridge, was built in the early 1900s, across the Copper River fifty miles from Cordova in what is now the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a multiple-span Pennsylvania truss bridge which completed a railroad line for the Copper River and...

, which had carried trains until the CR&NW shut down, was converted for highway use. It is one of two discontinuous segments of Alaska Route 10
Alaska Route 10
Alaska Route 10 refers to two unconnected highways in the U.S. state of Alaska:*Copper River Highway*Edgerton Highway...

.

The road extended only slightly beyond the bridge when the Good Friday Earthquake
Good Friday Earthquake
The 1964 Alaska earthquake, also known as the Great Alaskan Earthquake, the Portage Earthquake and the Good Friday Earthquake, was a megathrust earthquake that began at 5:36 P.M. AST on Good Friday, March 27, 1964...

 of 1964 halted construction and severely damaged the Million Dollar Bridge, collapsing the north span. Temporary repairs were made, and the bridge continued to be used, despite being unsafe. Permanent repairs were not completed until 2005.

The first 12 miles (19 km) of the highway is paved; the rest is gravel. A primitive four-wheel-drive road continues for 10 miles (16 km) beyond the end of the highway to the Allen River.
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