The rapid growth of the petrochemical industry in Jefferson and Orange counties in the early 20th century increased population and transportation needs, leading in the 1920s to plans for a bridge across the Neches River. Because of the depressed economy and disagreements among business leaders, the seven-year campaign to build it, led by the Port Arthur "News" and American Legion Post No. 7, moved slowly until 1934, when Gov. Miriam A. Ferguson signed a special law allowing county bond and Federal Public Works Administration funds to pay for state highway bridge construction. Project engineer G. G. Wickline used innovative techniques to design a bridge crossing 7,742 feet of marshy terrain and river bottom, with a 680-foot central span built to clear a Navy ship carrying a moored dirigible and a 176-foot elevated roadbed that was the world's highest over tidal waters. The bridge cost $2,750,000, its dedication on September 8, 1938, drew huge crowds as a major local event, and in a 1957 contest sponsored by the North Port Arthur Lions Club it received the name Rainbow Bridge.
