Bridge To A Simpler Time -- Bellevue Landmark Predates Most Of City

BELLEVUE - Especially in the wet weather, the 98-foot-high mishmash of wooden beams looms over Interstate 405 like scaffolding for an oversize Noah's Ark.

Although it's not quite as old as the biblical boat, the 102-foot-long Wilburton Trestle spanning the Mercer Slough north of Interstate 90 and east of I-405 serves up a daily reminder of earthier days for thousands of commuters blitzing by in 1990s, hurry-up fashion.

The sight of the huge wooden railroad bridge built 93 years ago can bring a needed dose of peace of mind amid the rush, the concrete and the malls.

The trestle is one of only two structures in Bellevue listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The other is the 1920s-era Winters House, also on Mercer Slough at 2102 Bellevue Way S.E.

Bellevue was little more than "a smattering of cabins and chicken coops" when the Northern Pacific Railroad built the trestle in 1904 to complete the Eastside's first railroad line, a 22-mile spur between Renton and Woodinville, according to Bellevue historian Bob Welch in his book "Bellevue and the New Eastside."

It took 19 months to build and was said to be the tallest trestle in the world when it was finished.

Each of its vertical supports consisted of the trunk of a whole tree, according to Bellevue Historical Society records.

The then-booming sawmill town of Wilburton, formed in 1895 on a hill above the slough, was larger than Bellevue then. It had 400 residents. Electricity didn't arrive to the area until 1913. Telephones came in 1916.

By 1920, the loggers had cleared the area and the sawmill had closed. Wilburton now blends in as but another suburban neighborhood in Bellevue.

In addition to crossings by the tourist-oriented Spirit of Washington dinner train, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad still runs occasional freight trains over it, said railroad spokesman Gus Melonas. The company has owned the trestle since a merger in 1970.

The trestle has received four major overhauls: in 1924, 1933, 1943-44 and 1972.

The 1972 work included adding steel girders and concrete pilings to its northern half for widening of Southeast Eighth Street where it runs under the trestle.

Roadside Attractions is an occasional feature of the Times' Eastside edition. If you spot something interesting on the Eastside you'd like to know more about, call 515-5625 or write to Roadside Attractions, The Seattle Times Eastside bureau, 10777 Main St., Bellevue, WA 98004. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Getting there

The Wilburton Trestle can be seen from Interstate 405 just south of downtown Bellevue. For a more leisurely look, take the Southeast Eighth Street exit from I-405 and drive under the trestle.