- City:
- Garfield County, UT
- Site Type:
- Roads, Bridges, and Tunnels, Infrastructure and Utilities
- New Deal Agencies:
- Work Relief Programs, Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
- Quality of Information:
- Very Good
- Marked:
- Yes
- Site Survival:
- Extant
Description
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built all the roads into Boulder UT, which had previously been inaccessible by modern roads of any kind. The CCC set up camp FS-18 on Escalante Mountain in 1933 and went to work building the first access road from the town of Escalante via Hell’s Backbone. That road was completed in September 1933, but was closed in winters.
According to Scenic Byway Utah 12: “Construction of Hell’s Backbone Road was completed in 1933 by Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), allowing vehicle traffic between Escalante and Boulder for the first time. Hell’s Backbone Bridge, a must-stop for taking photographs, allows travelers to pass above Sand Creek with views of the spectacular Box-Death Hollow Wilderness Area.”
The first all-season road from Escalante, also built by the CCC, was finished in 1940. It is today’s State Route 12.
Source notes
Scenic Byway Utah 12, at https://www.scenicbyway12.com/the-byway/scenic-backways/hells-backbone-road-scenic-backway/, accessed June 1, 2013.
The National Park Service, at https://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/ccc/ccc/chap6.htm, accessed June 1, 2013.
Utah.com, at https://www.utah.com/escalante/hells_backbone.htm, accessed June 1, 2013.
Site originally submitted by Brent McKee - wpatoday.org on June 3, 2013.
Additional contributions by Richard A Walker.
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