On This Day

Friday 1st November 1957

62 years ago

The Mackinac Straits Bridge, between Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas, opened to traffic. At 26,372-foot (8.038 km) the bridge (familiarly known as "Big Mac" and "Mighty Mac") is the world's 17th-longest main span and the longest suspension bridge between anchorages in the Western Hemisphere.The Mackinac Bridge is currently a toll bridge on Interstate 75 (I-75). Prior to the coming of I-75, the bridge carried US Highway 27 (US 27). It is one of only three segments of I-75 that are tolled, the others being the American half of the International Bridge near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and Alligator Alley in Florida. The current toll is $4.00 for automobiles and $5.00 per axle for trucks. The Mackinac Bridge Authority raised the toll in 2007 to fund a $300 million renovation program, which would include completely replacing the bridge deck. Every Labor Day, two of the lanes of the bridge are closed to traffic and open to walkers for the Mackinac Bridge Walk.Painting of the bridge takes seven years, and when painting of the bridge is complete, it begins again. The bridge celebrated its 150 millionth vehicle crossing on September 6, 2009. On June 25, 1958, to coincide with the 1958 celebration of the November 1957 opening, the United States Postal Service (USPS) released a 3¢ commemorative stamp featuring the recently completed bridge. It was entitled "Connecting the Peninsulas of Michigan" and 107,195,200 copies were issued. The USPS again honored the Mackinac Bridge as the subject of its 2010 priority mail $4.90 stamp, which went on sale February 3. The bridge authority and MDOT unveiled the stamp, which featured a "seagull’s-eye view" of the landmark, with a passing freighter below. Artist Dan Cosgrove worked from panoramic photographs to create the artwork. This is one of several designs that Cosgrove has produced for the USPS. A feature-length documentary entitled Building the Mighty Mac was produced by Hollywood filmmaker Mark Howell in 1997 and was shown on PBS. The program features numerous interviews with the key people who built the structure and includes restored 16mm color footage of the bridge's construction. The history and building of the bridge was featured in a 2003 episode of the History Channel TV show Modern Marvels. On July 19, 2007, the Detroit Science Center unveiled an 80-foot-long (24 m), 19-foot-tall (5.8 m) scale model of the Mackinac Bridge. The exhibit was part of the state’s 50th anniversary celebration of the bridge. Sherwin-Williams supplied authentic Mackinac Bridge-colored paint for the project. The bridge and its maintenance crew were featured in an episode of the Discovery Channel TV show Dirty Jobs on August 7, 2007. Host Mike Rowe and crew spent several days filming the episode in May 2007. MDOT also featured the bridge on the cover of the 2007 state highway map to celebrate its 50th anniversary.