History of Toledo, Washington
By Curt Cunningham

Crossing the Cowlitz

The first bridge over the Cowlitz river was built at Mayfield. The wagon road which crossed the bridge as one old settler remarked; "was a purty good road because there was only one mud hole, but that began at Mossyrock and ended at the Chehalis depot." On October 30, 1879, the Mayfield bridge was completed over the Cowlitz river. The wooden bridge was a Smith truss pattern and cost over $2,000. This gave the settlers living on the east side of the river, access to the Northern Pacific at all times of the year and it opened up about 10,000 acres of valuable river bottom lands. This was the first road into Mossyrock on the Klickitat prairie.

On July 4, 1883, W. E. Colby started a ferry service between Toledo and the community of Eadonia, and was known as the Layton Ferry. The ferry continued service until 1892 when a new wooden bridge was built over the river about a mile downstream from the ferry at Toledo. Eadonia was a farming community located southeast of Toledo, and was at one time called Eden prairie and Knab. In 1892 after the bridge was built at Toledo, a mail route to Eadonia was established. This service was discontinued a year later in 1893 and the residents of Eadonia had to pick up their mail at Toledo. In 1902 the village of Knab had 3 general stores. Today the area is known as the Layton prairie. 

On July 7, 1884, The Chehalis Nugget ran an article about the bridges that were to be built over the Chehalis river in Lewis county. One was near J. T. Browning's place at Claquato and another was near the Mills place in Centralia, where the Mellen Street bridge now crosses. The newspaper also said that the next bridge that Lewis county builds, should be over the Cowlitz river at Toledo.

During the spring of 1892, Lewis county started construction on a new wooden bridge over the Cowlitz river at Toledo. The wooden bridge was high enough to permit steamboats to go under it and the bridge was completed by the end of that summer. The bridge was 841 feet long and 20 feet wide, and was known as the Long Bridge.

On July 3, 1902, the body of Henry Miekler was found under the Toledo bridge. Miekler mysteriously disappeared in June and no trace of him was ever found until several local teens who were fishing in the river discovered the body. Henry Miekler was a wealthy farmer and for many years had resided near Winlock. It is thought he ended his life in a fit of insanity. Miekler Road at Olequa was named after him.

The Cowlitz River Floods

Throughout the centuries the Cowlitz river has at times overflowed its banks during heavy rains or an unusual snow melt. Toledo sits above the high water mark thus avoiding the devastation that the towns downriver faced. One of the worst recorded floods was in 1867 when the Cowlitz Landing was washed away. The frequent flooding has changed the course of the river at Toledo many times. The Toledo bridge has been washed away by the raging waters and was rebuilt only to be washed away again.

On February 2, 1894, the Cowlitz river was nearing flood stage and the Lewis county commissioners decided to take a trip to Toledo and inspect the bridge. The structure, which cost several thousand dollars to build, was in a danger of being washed away. Commissioner Young didn't think there was any issue but agreed that some work should be done on it at once. Small repairs were then made and the bridge survived the flooding waters.

On January 5, 1903, heavy rainfall caused the Cowlitz river to swell and overflow its banks. It was the worst flood anyone had seen in the past 25 years and the torrent carried away the center span of the Toledo bridge. Rail service was cutoff between Castle Rock and Kelso. The Joseph Kellogg was sent up river to rescue the stranded passengers.  

On July 22, 1908, the river flooded and the Toledo bridge was damaged but remained standing this time. The repair work was done by the Northwest Bridge Company for $3,775. 

On May 29, 1909, after the river flooded again. The Lewis county commissioners wanted to see first hand the devastation at Toledo, and made a trip to inspect the damage. They concluded that a considerable portion of the Cunningham place south of Toledo had to be protected with rip-rap and they found the county road between Toledo and Olequa had been entirely destroyed by the river for a considerable distance. 

The flood of 1909 changed the course of the river at Toledo. This new channel is the current course of the river as it passes by the town and the old channel became a slough. During May of 1909 the Lewis county commissioners were discussing the idea of changing the course of the river back to the old channel as a means of saving the Toledo bridge. In 1913 a log jam had been behind the bridge for the past few years and was dynamited in an effort to change the course of the river back into the old channel.

In 1917, the Toledo bridge was partly washed out in a flood, but it was quickly rebuilt and reopened for traffic.

During the 1930's and 1940's, the river changed its course about 3 times between these channels. In 1933 the flooding closed the Pacific Highway at Toledo and cars were routed over the Olequa bridge. After the floods of 1948-49, the river had changed course again, and is the current flow of the river as it passes by Toledo.

The Governor Tours the Pacific Highway

On Friday April 12, 1912, Governor Hay left Chehalis in his automobile to inspect the work of "Good Roads Day" in Lewis and Chehalis counties along the Pacific Highway. In the Governor's car besides the Governor was the Governor's wife, Senator Fishback and Dan W. Bush, of the Chehalis Dally Nugget. The group arrived in Toledo at 9:30am and after a brief address by the Governor, they were served a light lunch by the Toledo women. The members of the committee in charge of the entertainment were Mrs. Hackney, Mrs. Drew. Mrs. Boyles. Mrs. Ferrell, Mrs. Lewis and Mrs. Douge. There were 125 citizens and farmers, along with 20 teams, headed by County Commissioner Gray that were busy at work on roads near Toledo. Governor Hay said; "that this delegation will win the $20 cash prize offered by the commercial bodies of Centralia and Chehalis.

On April 13, 1912 the citizens of Toledo in cooperation with the Pacific Highway association of Toledo turned out for "Good Roads Day" to work on the highway beginning at the Toledo bridge and continuing 5 miles southbound toward Olequa. This section of the road has had many complaints by tourists of the rough and muddy conditions along the river. After the work was finished the highway was a good road from Toledo to the Cowlitz county line. Governor Hay and his wife, Senator Fishback and Dan Bush were greeted in Toledo by the women's committee, and served hot chocolate with wafers. Afterwards the Governor was escorted to the construction site to meet to workers. At the Olequa ferry, the Governor was met by the Kelso delegation of 45 citizens in 10 automobiles, along with delegations from Winlock, Ostrander and Carrollton. 

From Kelso was Senator F. L. Stewart, John L. Harris, P. P. Brush, George H. Kerr, James Catlln, W. P. Ely, J. M. Ayres, Clarence White; Fish Commissioner, C. A. Taylor; Albert Maurer, President of the Kelso Commercial Club; C. A. Peters, A. T. Laurie, Peter Knapp, Ted Gray, Dr. F. A. Bird, Dr. Roy Hacking; Frank J. Sardam, secretary of the Kelso Commercial club; from Ostrander, Oliver Byerly, E. S. Collins; from Winlock, O. L. Isabell, Jay Marcot, Otis Koundtree, A. N. Cheney, L. R. Qulllen, C. A. Leonard, H. A. Baldwin, Jacob Schafer, T. J. Elliott and E. J. Doty; from Carrollton, Chet Rulefson, A. Strldel; from Vader, Mayor G. O. Wade, W. C. Krog, W. R. Dilly, and R, H. Campbell; from Castle Rock, Winn Robbins, A. W. Carner, G. L. Buland, and J. A, Byerly from Kalama. 

The Governor made a brief talk at Olequa and said that owing to the enthusiasm displayed, he regretted not proclaiming the "Good Roads Day" a legal holiday. The party then proceeded to Kelso doing some excellent work all along the line, filling chuckholes and removing obstacles under the direction of the Governor. At Kelso, the Governor was met by another large delegation of citizens. 

The Governor said in a brief address that he was much pleased to note the many improvements to the roads in Cowlitz county since his trip over them a year ago. The ladies of the Aid Society entertained the Governor and his wife at a dinner held in the Commercial club. The Governor and his wife, were the house guests of Senator Stewart and his wife, while their stay in Kelso.

The Olequa Route or the Toledo Route?

On May 25, 1913, Governor Lister and the highway board traveled down the Pacific Highway from Olympia to inspect the work that had been recently completed. The Governor said the following about the highway; 

"When the present work is finished, it is expected that some interesting figures will be available as to actual cost of the work now under way. It is believed that these figures will be such that a greater impetus than ever will be given the cry for more paved roads in the country districts of the county. It is believed that the demonstration will result in Lewis county building all its hard surface roads in the future and that contractors will not be considered in future letting of work. The year 1913 will see fully three and a half miles of 16 foot concrete roads built in this county. Northwest of Centralia more than a mile is being laid by contract. East of Chehalis 5,700 feet is being laid. From Toledo to Cowlitz another mile will be built." 

The Highway Board then traveled from Chehalis to Toledo as guests of Commissioners Gray and Long. The group was impressed by the scenery along this stretch of road between Chehalis and Toledo. It passes through splendid farming country the entire distance. On the beautiful Cowlitz prairie where thousands of acres of farm lands can be seem that have been cultivated since the late 1830's. 

The prairie presents itself with one of the most beautiful views of the Cascade Mountains with its snow-capped peaks of Mt. Rainier, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Adams. In the distance for miles, stretches the magnificent Cowlitz river valley, winding its course from the mountains to the Columbia. As the motorist enjoys the beautiful view, the road then drops abruptly off the divide into the Cowlitz valley with the historic town of Toledo below at the river. Here the bridge over the Cowlitz river is crossed. 

The Toledo citizens welcomed the highway board royally, as well as a number of other citizens who had been especially invited to take the inspection tour. The Oddfellows Hall was scarcely sufficient to contain the many people who had come for miles to hear Governor Lister, Commissioner Roberts and others of the party speak to the group. 

The Toledo people proved royal entertainers and a banquet at 10pm closed the program, that was followed by many interesting toasts. At the banquet, the Toledoites were asked to present their case fully as to why the Pacific Highway should go over the surveyed route through their city rather than along another route which is desired by residents along the Northern Pacific mainline, and which would route the highway through Napavine, Winlock and Vader. 

The highway board was to determine their choice based on the greatest good to the greatest number of citizens at the lowest cost of construction and engineering. The morning of June 5, 1913, the highway board met the Cowlitz county commissioners and others at the border between Lewis and Cowlitz counties. The group then traveled to Castle Rock and Kelso. At Kelso, the Southwest Washington Development association meeting was attended. The next day on the 6th, the tour carried the board to Kalama, Woodland and into Clark county.

On August 1, 1913, the people of Toledo were rejoicing as rumors were received that the state highway commission by unanimous vote had decided that the Pacific Highway would go by way of Toledo. The residents of the entire Cowlitz valley were also very interested in this matter, as they believed that from the standpoint of public use, historic interest and scenery, this route was preferable to the one along the mainline of the railroad. It was understood that extensive roadwork between Toledo and the Cowlitz county line, which had been held up for some time, was awaiting a decision of the highway route, and was going to be rushed to completion.

Well it turned out that it was just a rumor and on August 21, 1913, the decision of the final route of the Pacific Highway from Toledo to the Cowlitz county line was still in limbo and the highway department abandoned the idea of spending any money on that portion of the roadway for which they had set aside $20.000 until a decision was made.

On August 26, 1913, state highway engineers were hard at work surveying the 3 proposed routes between Toledo and Castle Rock. The state was surveying these routes to find out which one was the best route for the new highway. The proposed routes were; 1) the south side of the Cowlitz river from Toledo, leading through the Cowlitz bend, 2) the route down the north side of the Cowlitz river from Toledo to Vader and crossing the Cowlitz at Olequa. 3) the same as the second route except that the Cowlitz river would be crossed a short distance down the river from Toledo using Kline's ferry near the Ferrier place. Kline's ferry was just west of the freeway.

On October 3, 1913, The board finally decided on the Toledo bridge as the point at which the Pacific Highway would cross the Cowlitz river. 

On October 11, 1913, 80 feet of the west approach of the Toledo bridge was found to be in dangerous condition. Walter Flannigan's traction engine had gone through the approach causing $100 damage. Nobody was hurt, and it was determined that the stringers were faulty and more fill was needed for the approach. The county was fast to correct this danger as on October 25, 1913, B. Conrad and A. E. Thorne were awarded a contract for adding more fill and repairing the west approach to the Toledo bridge.

On November 21, 1913, Lewis County Commissioner Thomas H. Gray, of the Third District, reported that the right-of-way for the Pacific Highway, about a mile and a half south of Toledo to the top of Salmon creek hill, that was owned by Bert Moore, was secured on November 4th after extended negotiations. Soil conditions were such that work was carried on during wet or dry weather, and there was an abundance of gravel mixture for most of the distance. 

The road work was a tremendous job, as there was a large amount of heavy grading and about 28,000 yards of dirt and rock had to be excavated at the cut. This work settled the question of which direction the Pacific Highway would take between Chehalis and Castle Rock. The completion of this section served a dual purpose by connecting one of the worst portions of the highway and providing the farmers in that section of Lewis county a good road to their natural market in Toledo. The goal of the highway department back then was to build roads toward the trade centers.

Battle on the Cowlitz River

At 2:30pm on Saturday December 6, 1913, Deputy Sheriffs Kirby and Howell, of Cowlitz county, killed an unknown desperado on the Cowlitz river just north of Toledo. The dead man was one of a pair which robbed the Castle Rock hardware store of Weihtje & Gehlman early Friday morning the 5th. The dead man's body was left lying in the brush where he fell, until that evening, when Coroner Edward Newell arrived. The second man, was believed to be Mike Donnelly, a paroled convict from the State Penitentiary at Walla Walla, made his escape.

Later that evening Sheriff Close of Cowlitz county and his 3 deputies, Howell, Kirby and Clark Studebaker, began the pursuit. Sheriff Foster and Deputy John Berry, of Lewis county joined the posse. They left Chehalis immediately by automobile and sped down the Pacific Highway toward Toledo. They took with them the Lewis county bloodhounds, which had proved their worth on previous occasions. If the escaped man was Donnelly, the posse expected a desperate and dangerous encounter.

The Cowlitz & Lewis county officers trailed the 2 men up the river to Toledo and apparently had lost track of them. Toledo resident E. Ritter had went into town shortly after noon, and gave the posse the information they needed, which led to the gun battle on the Cowlitz river. Ritter had been working just north of Toledo, where the old main road and the new Pacific Highway grade fork, when he saw 2 men camped nearby. He walked over and talked with them. While he was talking, he figured they were the bandits the posse was looking for and hurried back to town and told Sheriff Close what he saw. The Sheriff quickly decided they were the burglars.

The man who would be later killed, went into Toledo early Saturday and bought some bread for the camp which he and Donnelly had made. Sheriff Close and his deputies and some Toledo people who bad armed themselves for the occasion, at once went in hot pursuit. On their approach the 2 men attempted to escape by retreating into a clump of brush. Howell and Kirby went in after them, and as the officers approached, the 2 men jumped into some more brush. Close and Kirby followed; "Come out of there!" the Sheriff commanded. Rustling of the underbrush had indicated that the fugitives were sneaking away. Catching sight of one of the men again, the Sheriff commanded him to stop, and when he chose to run. Sheriff Close shot at him.

The other man hid successfully, but it was thought for a time that a sufficient guard could be kept near the woods to prevent his escape, as there are roads on all sides. However, it was reported late Saturday evening that the desperado had been seen on the Pacific Highway near the Grenier store on the Cowlitz prairie, and that he had doubled back down toward Toledo. The dead man had nothing on him to indicate his identity. He was heavily armed and had on his person some of the goods from the Castle Rock store, including automatic revolvers and ammunition.

On December 9, 1913 a coroner's jury composed of J. W. Daubney, Jack Scuitto, William Grafton, Sid Reeves, Ed McCue, and Grover Troth, returned a verdict that they were unable to determine who shot and killed the unknown bandit near Toledo in a battle with the sheriff and his deputies. The inquest was held in Centralia by Coroner Newell. E. Ritter testified that he saw the men on his land that Saturday morning and upon inspecting who they were, notified deputies Howell and Kirby, who had just arrived in Toledo after an all night chase on the Pacific Highway from Castle Rock.

The testimony of the 2 deputies was about the same. They said that they surprised the men in the camp and ordered them to throw up their hands. They said that the dead bandit started to comply, but that his partner, who was believed to be Mike Donnelly, an escaped convict, jumped into the brush and opened fire. The officers asserted that they both returned fire, but could not tell who fired the fatal shot. Donnelly was never captured and the identity of the dead bandit still remains a mystery. He was burled at the expense of the county.

The Highway Takes Shape

On August 15, 1914, work on the highway was progressing rapidly and the fill on each side of Salmon creek was almost completed. The work crews found the hard packed gravel was difficult to remove and they were forced to use blasting powder. The work had begun in the spring of 1914, but the contractor failed to perform and the bondsmen had to complete the work. Tom A. Sweeney of Portland took charge on July 21st and kept the work progressing without delay.

By October 3, 1914, the roadwork south of Toledo was nearing completion. Gravel had been laid to the top of the hill and the crew was now working between Toledo and the Salmon creek bridge. To the north of Toledo, the first mile of 16 foot paved roadway was opened to traffic and the grading on the additional half mile of concrete was almost finished.

On October 20, 1914, the work on the 6.6 miles of highway south of Toledo had been completed. Between the bridge and Salmon creek, crews had built a bulkhead along the Cowlitz slough to protect the roadbed from the high water, as the highway ran parallel with the slough. The 1.5 miles of paved road north of Toledo was also completed and opened for traffic. Now that this work was completed, Engineer Gillis was able to begin the survey for the continuation of the improvement of the highway south over Gumbo Hill toward the Toutle river.

In the summer of 1917, a new section of highway was built over Jackson hill north of Toledo. This 1.32 mile section was built west of the old road and reduced the steep grade to 5%. The original highway on this section is now in Lewis and Clark State park and used as a service road and horse trail. 

On April 28, 1918, a group of tourists hopped in a Chalmers and took a trip from Portland to Fort Lewis, the following is a report of their trip From Castle Rock to Chehalis; "Between Castle Rock and Toledo the road follows through a very interesting stretch through dense woods and tall timber where budding trees and other arrays of greenery combine to make a beautiful trip through the woods. This stretch has been graveled and is in good shape. Several roads turn off at ferries across the Cowlitz, but the Pacific Highway to Toledo is the best. During the stormy weather and high water last winter part of the Toledo bridge was washed out, but a new approach has been constructed and this route is far the better."

"This bridge is a long one over the Cowlitz river to Toledo. On the outskirts of that little town pavement comes as a sort of surprise. The distance to Chehalis over this route is not quite 20 miles and 12.8 miles of this is already paved, while the rest has been graveled and is ready for paving. A short detour leads off the main road and follows through a pretty stretch adjacent to the main highway. This is about one mile and has a few feet of plank."

The New Toledo Bridge

During the spring of 1918, a new bridge over the Cowlitz river at Toledo was proposed. The main structure was to be a reinforced concrete arch construction with four spans totaling 630 feet in length. The earth fill approaches were to be 28 feet in width and 1,220 feet in length and was to be surfaced with gravel 16 feet wide. The plans for the new structure called for a roadway 20 feet in width in the clear with a 4-foot sidewalk. The plans were prepared by the State Highway Department but the work was postponed before it could begin.

On January 20, 1919, a portion of the Toledo bridge was washed out by a flood. Traffic was detoured over the Olequa ferry until repairs could be made. Crews were rushed to the bridge and repairs were quickly made.

Instead of a concrete bridge, the state decided to build a steel bridge over the Cowlitz river at Toledo. Work started on May 11, 1919 and the bridge was practically complete by September 30, 1920. Contractors made the embankment for the approaches using sand and gravel from a sandbar in the slough near the bridge.

During the bridge construction, cars were detoured from Chehalis through Napavine, Winlock and Vader, and then down the Westside Highway to Castle Rock. This route was treacherous during the wet season as the road became extremely muddy. The rains made it extremely difficult to get through without the assistance of a farmer and his horses.

On June 19, 1920, Marie Stocking of Seattle, and Mrs. Thacker of Yakima, drove to Portland for the Travelers' Protective Association convention. They made the trip in Stocking's 1916 Oldsmobile Eight; "The highway is in awful condition." said Stocking. "The main highway south from Chehalis by way of Toledo is closed for construction work. We drove as far down the pavement about 7 miles from Chehalis, as we could, but there the main highway was closed and we were detoured off it around by way of Olequa and down the west side of the Cowlitz river into Castle Rock over the bridge."

"This detour road is in awful shape. There are mud holes of red, sticky clay, where it is next to impossible to get through. Cars were stuck all along here. One car had been in a mud hole over 3 hours when we came along. I don't know how we managed to get through without help, but give all the credit to the Oldsmobile. In places we were just able to move in low gear. We had to take the pan off the bottom of the car to obtain clearance. Farmers along here were cleaning up good money towing cars out of mud holes, and the owners of the cars were only too thankful to get towed. The worst place was over a hill this side of Olequa, where cars were stuck all along the road."

On July 5, 1920, the new steel bridge over the Cowlitz river was dedicated. State notables were in attendance including Governor Hart, Congressperson Johnson, Commissioner Allen and others. Addresses were made by Governor Hart and Congressperson Johnson. The bridge was built for approximately $130,000 and the substructure was composed of 3 concrete piers in the bed of the river, 18, 22 and 25 feet below the low water mark. 

Concrete abutments were constructed at each end of the bridge with wings for retaining walls that were a feature and there was a cluster of electric lights on each of these wing walls. There were 4 steel spans, each 130 feet long. The length of the bridge itself was 720 feet and was one of the longest automobile bridges in the state at the time. There was also a 4 foot walk for pedestrians on the upper side of the bridge and the roadway was paved with asphaltic concrete 3.5 inches thick at the centerline.

The bridge would be replaced in 1955 and again in 1993, which is the current bridge in 2021.

The Pacific Highway is Completed

The paving of the highway between Toledo and Chehalis was completed in the summer of 1920. In 1922, south of Toledo, a new 216 foot concrete bridge was under construction over Salmon creek along with a new road up the Salmon creek hill. Both jobs were completed in 1923. The paving from Kalama to Toledo was also completed in 1923.

The Freeway Arrives

In the 1950's the new freeway was under construction through the Cowlitz Corridor. The Interstate crosses the Cowlitz river 2 miles west of Toledo. The advent of the freeway ended 100 years of Toledo being a transportation hub and stopping place for travelers going between Portland and Puget Sound. After 1954, as cars were speeding past Toledo over 2 miles away, the once vibrant bustling town, became just another small quiet community along the banks of the Cowlitz river. 

Its tranquility was now undisturbed by the years of the constant rush of canoes and bateaux of the Cowlitz People and the Hudson's Bay Company, and later the steamers that dropped off thousands of settlers who were looking for a new home, and years later, the roar of the automobiles as they traveled on the Pacific Highway as they hurried to Portland or the Puget Sound.

The Eruption of Mt. St. Helens

For 30 years, Toledo remained a quiet town out in the country, but things were to change on May 18, 1980. This was when Mt. St. Helens awoke from it's slumber and erupted. Toledo was spared from major damage although it was covered in volcanic ash. 

Today Toledo is the gateway to Mount St. Helens and is a great place to visit on your way to see the volcano.