Top 10 Remarquable Facts about the Mackinac Bridge

Mackinac Bridge by Chris Light – Wikimedia Commons

Top 10 Remarquable Facts about the Mackinac Bridge

The Mackinac Bridge, Michigan, also known as the Mighty Mac or the Big Mac, is the longest suspension bridge in the Western Hemisphere. It connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan, the only state with two peninsulas in the US. This is also the world’s 26th-longest main span.

The Mackinac Bridge is part of Interstate 75 (I-75) and the Lake Michigan and Huron components of the Great Lakes Circle Tour across the straits; it is also a segment of the U.S. North Country National Scenic Trail. The bridge connects the city of St. Ignace on the north end with the village of Mackinaw City on the south. 

The bridge was designed by the engineer David B. Steinman and completed in 1957 only after many decades of struggles to begin construction. Here are the top 10 remarquable facts about the Mackinac Bridge. 

1. The Mackinac Bridge opened on November 1, 1957

When it was opened, it was connecting two peninsulas linked for decades by ferries. At the time, the bridge was formally dedicated as the “world’s longest suspension bridge between anchorages”, allowing a superlative comparison to the Golden Gate Bridge, which has a longer center span between towers, and the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge, which has an anchorage in the middle.

It remains the longest suspension bridge with two towers between anchorages in the Western Hemisphere. The length of the bridge’s main span is 3,800 feet (1,158 m), which makes it the third-longest suspension span in the United States and 20th longest suspension span worldwide. It is also one of the world’s longest bridges overall. 

2. The idea of the Mackinac  bridge was discussed in the Michigan Legislature in the 1880s

Photo of the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse, with the Mighty Mack in the background by Aml1995 – Wikimedia Commons

At the time, the Straits of Mackinac area was becoming a popular tourist destination, especially following the creation of Mackinac National Park on Mackinac Island in 1875. 

After the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883, local residents began to imagine that such a structure could span the straits. In 1884, a store owner in St. Ignace published a newspaper advertisement that included a reprint of an artist’s conception of the Brooklyn Bridge with the caption “Proposed bridge across the Straits of Mackinac”.

At a July 1888 meeting of the board of directors of the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Cornelius Vanderbilt II proposed that a bridge be built across the straits, of a design similar to the one then under construction across the Firth of Forth in Scotland. This would advance commerce in the region and help lengthen the resort season of the hotel.

3. The building of the Mackinac bridge cost estimate was $95 million

Tolls collected were to pay for the bridge in 20 years. Construction began on May 7, 1954. The bridge was built under two major contracts. The Merritt-Chapman and Scott Corporation of New York was awarded the contract for all major substructure work for $25.7 million while the American Bridge Division of United States Steel Corporation was awarded a contract of more than $44 million to build the steel superstructure.

Construction took three and a half years (four summers, no winter construction) at a total cost of $100 million. It opened to traffic on schedule on November 1, 1957, and the ferry service was discontinued on the same day. The bridge was formally dedicated on June 25, 1958. 

4. The 50th anniversary of the Mackinac bridge’s opening was celebrated on November 1, 2007

Mackinac Bridge from I-75 Northbound, south of the straits by Chris Light – Wikimedia Commons

Mennen Williams was governor during the construction of the Mackinac Bridge. He began the tradition of the governor leading the Mackinac Bridge Walk across it every Labor Day. U.S. Senator Prentiss M. Brown has been called the “father of the Mackinac Bridge”, and was honored with a special memorial bridge token created by the Mackinac Bridge Authority.

The bridge officially achieved its 100 millionth crossing exactly 40 years after its dedication, on June 25, 1998. The 50th anniversary of the bridge’s opening was celebrated on November 1, 2007, in a ceremony hosted by the Mackinac Bridge Authority at the viewing park adjacent to the St. Ignace causeway. The bridge was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2010.

5. The design of the Mackinac Bridge was influenced by the lessons from the first Tacoma Narrows Bridge

The first Tacoma Narrows Bridge failed in 1940 because of its instability in high winds. Three years after that disaster, Steinman published a theoretical analysis of suspension-bridge stability problems, which recommended that future bridge designs include deep stiffening trusses to support the bridge deck and an open-grid roadway to reduce its wind resistance. 

Both of these features were incorporated into the design of the Mackinac Bridge. The stiffening truss is open to reducing wind resistance. The road deck is shaped like an airfoil to provide lift in a crosswind, and the center two lanes are open grid to allow vertical airflow, which fairly precisely cancels the lift, making the roadway stable in design in winds of up to 150 miles per hour.

6. Every Labor Day, the Mackinac Bridge is open to walkers for the Mackinac Bridge Walk

Mackinac Bridge from Mackinaw City by Peter K Burian – Wikimedia Commons

Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United States.

 The Mackinac Bridge Walk is an annual event held every Labor Day since 1958 in Michigan in which people may walk the length of the Mackinac Bridge. Walkers are traditionally led across by the governor of Michigan. In an average year, 40,000 to 65,000 people participate in the five-mile walk. This is nearly the combined population of the three counties connected by the bridge. The Labor Day bridge walk is the sole exception to the rule prohibiting pedestrians on the bridge.

7. Painting the Mackinac Bridge takes seven years recurrently

When the painting of the bridge is complete, it begins again. The current painting project began in 1999 and was expected to take 20 years to complete because the lead-based paint needs to be removed, incurring additional disposal requirements.

The length of the bridge’s main span is 3,800 feet, which makes it the third-longest suspension span in the United States and 20th longest suspension span worldwide. It is also one of the world’s longest bridges overall. These are what account for the length of time it takes to paint the bridge.

8. Bicycles and pedestrians are not permitted on the Mackinac Bridge

A picture of the Mackinac Bridge by Jeffness – Wikimedia Commons

Some individuals have difficulty crossing bridges, a phenomenon known as gephyrophobia. The Mackinac Bridge Authority has a Drivers Assistance Program that provides drivers for those with gephyrophobia or anyone who is more comfortable having someone else drive them across. 

More than a thousand people use this service every year. Those interested can arrange, either by phone or with the toll collector, to have their cars or motorcycles driven to the other end. There is no additional fee for this service. Bicycles and pedestrians are not permitted on the bridge. Up until 2017, an exception was allowed for riders of two annual bicycle tours.

9. During the summer months, the Mackinac Bridge becomes a major tourist destination

The Upper Peninsula and the Mackinac Bridge have become major tourist destinations, especially during summer. In addition to visitors to Mackinac Island, the bridge has attracted interest from a diverse group of tourists including bridge enthusiasts, bird-watchers, and photographers.

The Straits area is a popular sailing destination for boats of all types, which makes it easier to get a closer view of the underlying structure of the bridge. 

10. There’s a documentary on the Mackinac Bridge

Close up of the Span Of the Mackinac Bridge, taken on Labor Day, 1st September 2008, At the Bridge Walk by Dehk – Wikimedia Commons

A feature-length documentary entitled Building the Mighty Mac was produced by Hollywood filmmaker Mark Howell in 1997 and was shown on PBS. The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and television program distributor based in Arlington, Virginia.

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 bridge and its maintenance crew were also 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.