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The old Knapp's
Hill road didn't always look as smooth as it does in this
photo. Named for Frank E. Knapp, who operated a ferry on the
Columbia River at a point know as Ribbon Cliff and had a
mining claim in Knapp's Coulee area, the original steep,
windiing, rouph wagon road was built in 1897. At intervals
it suffered neglect, becoming almost impassable. In 1905,
the Wenatchee Republic newspaper reported that "for the past
two years it has been in notoriously unfit condition with
resultant damage to wagons, horseflesh and temper." With the
advent of cars, it became a testing strip for those
early-day autos. If a car could get halfway up in high gear,
it was considered a mechanical wonder. Some drivers backed
up the grade because the gasoline wouldn't flow uphill into
the carburetor. The grade was replaced about 1936 with a 3.1
mile gradual stretch, including a tunnel.
Photo from
postcard courtesy of Alice Bumgarner. |
