The idea of a bridge connecting the two peninsulas began in February of 1884, but ground didn't break until May of 1954. The bridge opened for traffic on November 1st, 1957 all according to plan.
The Mackinac Bridge is the fifth longest suspension bridge in the world. The longest suspension bridge is the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge in Japan with a suspension length of 12,826 feet.
The total length of wire used to build the Mackinac Bridge is 42,000 miles. That would be like driving across the United States (east to west) 14.5 times!
The bridge weighs a whopping 1,024,500 tons! That's over 2 billion pounds!
The building of the bridge employed over 11,000 people working as engineers, construction workers, and in quarries, shops, and mills.
The bridge cost $99,800,000 to build and was funded through bonds. These bonds were paid up by July 1, 1986, however, there is still a fare to cross to help cover the cost of operating and maintaining the bridge. It is $4 for a standard car to cross the bridge.
Even when the bridge "moves", it can only move in the direction in which the wind is blowing. We didn't notice any rocking or moving of the bridge while crossing and it was really windy.
It was absolutely amazing to cross and experience how giant the bridge actually is. I wasn't nervous or scared at all, just in awe. :)
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