ON THIS DAY IN UNITED STATES HISTORY
November 1, 1957
Worlds Longest Suspension Bridge Opens
On this day in 1957, the Mackinac Bridge connecting Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas opened to traffic. At
the time, the five mile bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world (now the third longest). The actual
construction of the bridge began May 7, 1954 and required 350 Engineers, 3,500 men at the work site and another
7,500 at quarries, shops, mills, etc. There are 42,000 miles of wire in the main cables which combine to create a
main cable diameter of 24-1/2 ". The bridge weighs over a million Tons. Today, some months see as many as a half
million vehicles generating revenue of over two million dollars.
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