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Burlington's Snake Alley is the world's crookedest street
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COLLECTION
OURTOWNS
Crooked street a popular attraction in Burlington
Snake Alley is one of the state’s most famous attractions, an inexplicably crooked street that zigs and zags its way down a towering bluff between a neighborhood shopping area and a downtown business district.
Snake Alley, which drops 58 feet, was built in 1894 as an experimental street design, the conception of a trio of German immigrants who decided that the winding vineyard paths in the old country could provide an easier link between the two areas of town.
The three men who built Snake Alley all had experience in road construction. They included:
• Charles Starker was a German-trained architect who also played a key role in the development of Crapo Park, another popular destination in Burlington.
• Wiliam Steyh was Burlington’s city engineer, a native of Burlington whose parents had immigrated to the area from Germany. Steyh also played a key role in the
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The alley is composed of limestone and blueclay bricks. The constantly changing slant from one curve to the next necessitated a complicated construction technique to keep the high grade to the outside.
Snake Alley consists of five half-curves and two quarter-curves over a distance of 275 feet from Washington Street to Columbia. It’s steep grade and unique design makes it popular among bicyclists, walkers, and a handful of motorists willing to tackle the incline.
Late spring of each year, it’s home to the Snake Alley Criterion, one of the top-ranked road races in the U.S.; bicyclists tackle the street from bottom to top.
A video of a car drive down Snake Alley.
development of Crapo Park, as well as the local trolley system and stone viaducts.
• George Kreichbaum was also the son of German immigrants and a paving contractor who built the first brick street in Burlington. A true craftsman, he laid the brick for Snack Alley and it remains more than a century later.
When the street was completed, it was hailed by the Burlington Hawkeye as a triumph in practical engineering. City leaders were so pleased with Snake Alley that they made plans to build even more streets in the same manner. However, horse-pulled carriages had trouble navigating the switchback design.
