The McGilvray "Seven Bridges Road"

The McGilvray "Seven Bridges Road". . In the early 1850s Scottish immigrant Alexander McGilvray established a small settlement and ferry service, both known as "McGilvray's Ferry," along the Black River. For the next forty years the ferry made seasonal river crossings despite frequent log jams. Local citizens repeatedly petitioned for a more dependable means to cross the river, and in 1892 La Crosse County erected the first in a series of wooden bridges on McGilvray Road. Unfortunately, the river's marshy waters and frequent floods soon rotted the wood. From 1905 through 1908, the La Crosse Bridge and Steel Company erected a series of steel bridges. Designed and patented by Charles M. Horton, these bowstring arch truss bridges incorporated "hook-clips" instead of rivets to fasten and strengthen structural members. Five of these rare bowstring truss bridges are found on McGilvray Road and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1975 the bridges became part of the Van Loon Wildlife Area. In 1997 an additional historic truss bridge was moved to this location.