Valley City State Normal School was designated in the State Constitution in 1889, but without appropriations, and only generous contributions from local citizens allowed the school to open in October 1890. After appropriations passed in 1891, McFarland Hall was ready for occupation in December 1892. Because students boarded with private families in town, a bridge linking the school with the community was essential. A wooden footbridge opened in the fall of 1892 and made the campus more accessible, but the cheap pine structure had to be removed nearly every year when the ice went, causing expense and inconvenience. In 1901, Dibley & Robinson Company of Fargo built the current ornate bridge for $1,940. The only one of its kind in North Dakota, it is a three-span, 150 foot long suspension bridge. A 1902 Normal School Catalog praised the picturesque Sheyenne, the panoramic view of the city from McFarland Hall, and the beautiful steel wire suspension bridge leading from the city side to the grounds. The bridge's two lattice towers on concrete footings support two parallel main cables anchored to concrete abutments on each bank of the river, while the walkway hangs from suspender rods attached to floor beams, stringers, and a stiffening truss that also serves as the railing. During a 1993 renovation, a steel pipe was inserted within each leg to transfer cable loads directly to the piers. The Valley City State Normal School Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995, and in 1997 floodwaters on the Sheyenne River rose to within a foot of the walkway.