As you take a walk across the 1,352 foot span of the Bell Street Bridge, you might imagine a time when this bridge had not yet been constructed. In 1882, the Northern Pacific Railroad platted the townsite of Glendive, Montana, here, against the arid backdrop of the badlands. This location was an ideal supply and distribution center since it was where the railroad first met the Yellowstone River. In the Spring of 1882, once the ice had broken up, the glendive Ferry was installed to provide transportation. The cable across the river had to be run under water so steamboats could pass uninhibited. But by 1883, the railroad was completed past Glendive, so freight was moved by rail instead of steamboat. Since there was no more steamboat traffic upriver from Glendive, the ferry cable could be run above water, which made the ferry crossing much faster. The fare was $1.00 for a team of horses, but settlers could get 50 rides for $6.25. In April of 1883, the Glendive Times boasted of its success saying, “Glendive is booming. The ferry plys across twice a day!”

If you were standing on the bank, close to where the ferry operated and looking back toward the badlands, the highest point is the badlands butte, which overlooks the community of Glendive. The butte was originally named Beacon HIll, but the locals know it as “Hungry Joe.” You see, Joe was a ferry operator and after his morning round trip, he would shut down and walk home for lunch. Joe lived in a dugout near the base of Beacon Hill, and it would be quite a while before he made it back to push off the afternoon ferry. Old Joe enjoyed his lunch breaks, and it didn’t matter how many people were waiting to cross. Time passed, and he earned a new nickname, and eventually Beacon Hill took on that name of it’s first resident, “Hungry Joe.”

The Bell Street bridge before you replaced an older steel truss bridge. It was a four-span bridge, one span was a swing span because the Yellowstone was still navigable by boat.

That bridge was replaced by another built in 1900, which was replaced by the present Bell Street Bridge built from 1924 to 1926. It was built alongside the 1900 bridge, and as soon as construction was completed, the 1900 bridge was dismantled. The contractor for the Bell Street Bridge was Boomer, McGuire, and Blakesley of Great Falls, Montana.

The Bell Street Bridge qualifies for listing in the National Register for its important historical associations with the commercial development of Glendive, Montana, and as a significant engineering accomplishment.