Cabrillo Bridge Balboa Park

Cabrillo Bridge Balboa Park San Diego painting by RD Riccoboni. The California Building is seen above the tree tops. Historic Balboa Park Bridge makes the grand entrance into of America's crown Jewels. The seven-arched, cantilevered Cabrillo Bridge is the first of its kind in California. In form, if not construction, it may have been inspired by a historic Roman bridge or Spanish viaduct. Frank P. Allen, Jr., the 1915 Exposition's director of works, and Thomas B. Hunter, a San Francisco engineer, designed the scenic bridge. Built mostly by hand by intrepid workers on scaffolding, the bridge has hollow "legs" reinforced with steel and resting on concrete caissons. It was recently retrofitted to meet today's seismic standards.