Victoria Avenue grew from the vision of Matthew Gage, a jeweler from Kingston, Canada, who moved to Riverside in 1881 and developed the Gage Canal, making it possible to plant the vast, arid lands that became known as Arlington Heights. To promote land sales there, Gage and his brother-in-law William Irving designed a grand avenue and bridge named for Britain's Queen Victoria. The dual carriage-way road was modeled after Riverside's Magnolia Avenue, with a wide median between travel lanes and spacious parkways on both sides. Construction of the Victoria Bridge over the Tesquite Arroyo began in September 1891 by the Riverside Trust Company, and the cantilevered wooden truss bridge was completed in two months at a cost of $12,000. In the spring of 1892, grading of Victoria Avenue began and the first trees were planted. Franz Hosp, one of California's early landscape designers, was hired to oversee its beautification. From its early horse-and-buggy days to the present, Victoria Avenue has remained a showcase of roadway and landscape design. President Theodore Roosevelt toured the avenue in May 1903 and dedicated a palm tree at its head to mark his visit. On June 11, 1969, it was declared City of Riverside Cultural Heritage Landmark #8, and in October 2000 it received national historic recognition when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Since its beginning in 1892, Victoria Avenue has been one of Riverside's best-loved features.