Historic Guffey Bridge
Melba Area, Canyon County
- Grant: 1997
Location: Celebration Park on the Snake River, near Melba and south of Nampa.
The Guffey Bridge is Idaho’s largest historic artifact and was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The bridge is the only Parker-Through-Truss Railroad Bridge in Idaho. It was designed to facilitate the hauling of gold and silver ore from Silver City mines at the turn of the century. The 450-ton steel structure is 70 feet tall and spans 500 feet over the Snake River. The cost of construction and other circumstances concerning the Boise, Nampa and Owyhee Railroad precluded hauling any ore across the bridge but it was instrumental in the agricultural development of the area. The bridge was abandoned in 1947, saved from demolition in the1970s and purchased and restored by Canyon County in 1989.