The Island of Hawaiʻi (Appendix D)

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Bridge Inventory Form Statement of Significance: The Hakalau Plantation Road Overpass is part of the 1950 "Seismic Wave Damage Rehabilitation Project"that followed the 1946 tsunami. This tsunami caused irreparable damage to the Hilo Railroad Company which sold its bridges for scrap and its right-of-way was repurposed into the Hawaii Belt Road, itself constructed between 1932 and 1958. William R. Bartels, the Territorial Highway Department director, drew up plans for the belt road's bridges and repurposed components of rail bridges into the new belt road. The Hakalau Plantation Road Overpass used steel girders salvaged from the 80-foot span of the Maulua Gulch Railroad Bridge as lateral cross-bracing members. Since 2015, the bridge has not been in service. Because the bridge is associated with major transportation improvements, as well as Hawaii's sugar plantation economy and reconstruction efforts following the 1946 tsunami, it is therefore significant under Criterion A. Research did not indicate an association with the lives of persons significant in our past. National Register Bulletin 15, How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation, provides additional guidance for evaluating individuals under Criterion B. While the bridge is associated with William R. Bartels, master engineers are represented by their works and evaluated under Criterion C. Therefore, the bridge is not significant under Criterion B. The bridge's steel construction is an example of a distinctive and rare structural type as the extreme marine environment of Hawaii precluded widespread use of steel. Its later adaptation into a highway bridge is illustrative of changing travel patterns of the mid-20th century. The bridge is also associated with master engineer William R. Bartels. For these reasons, the bridge is significant under Criterion C. The bridge was not evaluated under Criterion D as part of this assessment. The bridge remains in its original location. It retains integrity of design, materials, and workmanship. Its integrity of setting is intact as development surrounding the bridge is limited and its lush, semi-rural surroundings remains. The bridge retains integrity of feeling and association as a mid-twentieth century highway structure associated with the Hawaii Belt Road and the "Seismic Wave Damage Rehabilitation Project." Therefore, the Hakalau Plantation Road Overpass is eligible for the NRHP. SHBIE Update 2024