Michigan is the only state in the union composed to two separated peninsulas. At the closest point, the upper and lower peninsulas are a mere five miles apart. In the early twentieth century, the only way to make the trip across the five miles of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron was to take a boat ride from one side to the other. As businesses expanded and industry grew, the demand to cross the lakes for travel and commerce purposes grew. The only way to cross the lake was by means of a ferry service, which was unable to keep up with consumer demand. Michigan residents were unable to get convenient and frequent transport between the peninsulas. They needed a consistent, fast, and safe way to travel freely from the mainland to the upper-peninsula. In response, the construction of a five-mile-long suspension bridge to link the peninsulas was set into action. The construction of the Mackinac Bridge was greatly significant to the national economy, the field of engineering, the efficiency of travel, and the historic symbolism of the state of Michigan. The first and most challenging problem associated with building the Mackinac Bridge arrived long before the bridge was even designed. Financing such an enormous project was no easy feat. In 1928, the idea of connecting the upper and lower peninsulas was proposed to Congress for the first time (Brown 4). At the time, the suspected bridge project was very much under government scrutiny and control. In fact, the initial boost in interest in pursuing the construction of a bridge came about due to the depression. The Public Works Administration (PWA) had been created under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal economic plan which would fund certain construction projects with th... ... middle of paper ... ...iewing of the Mackinac Bridge. It is now known by Michigan residents as the “Mighty Mac.” Over the years, the Mighty Mac has seen several iconic moments in history including a wedding proposal in the emergency lane and the sudden birth of a child halfway across the bridge. With each new story, the Mackinac Bridge becomes further steeped in Michigan history and an even greater symbol of the Great Lakes State. The bridge is now a common event location. The annual “bridge walk” attracts over 50,000 participants every Labor Day weekend, but other groups have arranged various crossings. Everything from Harley Davidson Motorcycle rallies to organized Chevrolet Corvette crossings has taken place on the Mighty Mac, as well as a plethora of bicyclist groups. The Mackinac Bridge provides a thrilling passage between the peninsulas and has become the portrait of Michigan.
Gregory Wigmore’s article Before the Railroad: From Slavery to Freedom in the Canadian-American Borderland covers the main theme of local history during the 19th century in Detroit and Windsor. In particular, Wigmore looks at how the Detroit River served as an escape route between the transnational borders for slaves living on both sides of the river. Wigmore explores how the border was the godsend for the slaves because a simple cross across the river would allow them their freedom. Wigmore’s main focus is the many factors and laws that happened between the 1810’s and the 1820’s that played an important role in this freedom.
Located just north of Michigan lies a unique little island that may be small in size but large in history. Glaciers once covered this land and after they began to recede a unique landscape was revealed as was the opening for its place in history. The Mackinac Island’s history has been due in large part to its geographical location and terrain makeup.
Before any canals were even built, there was a great demand for better transportation to and from the west. During this time of exploration, something was necessary in order for settlement to progress. After the canals were built, people living in to north grew exceedingly wealthy from the trading benefits of the canals. This wealth would eventually create economic differences with the southern United States(Drago 178).
By the 1840’s The Old Grand River Indian trail was but a muddy, mucky pair of ruts that was often impassable for months out of the year. In the late 1840’s wooden plank roads were appearing in the U.S. and the General Plank Road Act of 1850 allowed private enterprises in Michigan to build plank roads provided they held to certain specifications. Roads were 16 feet wide of inch thick oak or pine with mandatory drainage ditches to each side. 1851 saw the incorporation of the Detroit-Howell plank road company which included such Detroit notables as James Couzens and Lewis Cass amongst its investors. The new 50 mile turnpike to Howell would later be connected to the Capital via the Howell-Lansing Plank road in 1852. Tollbooths were installed at intervals of every 5 miles along the oak planks and often lodging and taverns sprang up at these locations. Note: (The Grand River and Joy Road intersection is exactly 5 miles Northwest of Woodward.) Tolls collected at these locations were xx $ per mile and interestingly many hamlets sprung up around these predecessors to the on-ramp. Some of these towns still survive today as suburbs and cosmopolitan municipalities. Towns like Redford, Farmington, Novi, Howell and Brighton all were stops along the Detroit – Howell – Lansing plank pikes. Today one coach stop, the Botsford Inn in Livonia at Grand River and Mi...
On May 24, 1854, construction began of the Victoria Bridge. This was a difficult task for the workers given the size of the bridge (“almost two miles in length from shore to shore” ) was the largest construction project during this period of time. Moreover, the construction of the bridge did not cease during the winter months. Therefore, many of the workers on the bridge would continue even while the St-Lawrence River froze underneath their
"The two races have lived here together. The Negro has been here in America since 1619, a total of 344 years. He is not going anywhere else; this country is his home. He wants to do his part to help make his city, state, and nation a better place for everyone, regardless of color and race. Let me appeal to the consciences of many silent, responsible citizens of the white community who know that a victory for democracy in Jackson will be a victory for democracy everywhere” (Medgar Evers in Jackson Mississippi, 2013). This excerpt is taken from a 17 minute speech by Medgar Evers on May 20, 1963, in response to the vocal criticisms of Mayor Allen Thompson’s view of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as being ‘outside agitators’.
To me, the drive felt like forever even though it was only 35 miles from Petoskey to Mackinaw City. As 10-year-old me sat in the back seat of my mom’s car, I remember repeatedly asking the question most parents dread to hear, “are we almost there?” Every time I asked she would shake her head in bemused frustration and respond, “you’ll know when we get there”. At the time, I was not sure what I was most excited for: the ride on the ferry, the big horses, the historical fort, the inevitable delicious ice cream; it all sounded whimsically amazing and I could not be more excited to arrive on Mackinac Island.
Many mass construction projects in the history of the United States have had a major impact on the economy and culture; however, not many of these have had as large as an impact as the Interstate Highway Act of 1956. The Interstate Highway Act revolutionized the way that we think about highways today. The act created an extremely easy mode of transportation for people across the country. Not only was the Interstate Highway Act extremely helpful in making rural and urban transportation for normal people, but it also helped commercial businesses in increasing sales across the country. These businesses were now able to transport their goods cheaper and faster. The Interstate Highway Act was tremendously beneficial in regards to its economic, social, and cultural significance. The legislation was significant economically in the way that it promoted business and cut travel costs, it was significant socially in the way that it allowed people to see friends and family even if they did not live close, and it was significant culturally in the way that it allowed people to move out to the country for low costs in order to live a happier life.
In The Artificial River, Carol Sheriff describes how when the digging of the Erie Canal began on July 4, 1817, no one would have been able to predict that the canal would even be considered a paradox of progress. One of the major contradictions of progress was whether or not triumphing art over nature was even considered progress. People were not sure during the nineteenth century if changing the environment for industrialization was necessarily a good thing. Another contradiction to progress that resulted from the Erie Canal was when people started holding the state government responsible for all their financial misfortunes. An additional contradiction to progress that the Erie Canal displayed was how many of its workers were either children, or men that lived lives that were intemperate and disrespectful to women. As American history students look back at the Erie Canal today, they generally only imagine how the canal was extraordinary for the residents of New York, but not all the issues and problems it also produced.
... line the canal today. The development of the railroad in the 19th century and the automobile in the 20th century sealed the fate of the Erie Canal.
McCullough explains how Johnstown became an example of ‘The Gilded Age’ industrialization prior to the 1889 disaster. The canal made Johnstown the busiest place in Cambria County in the 1820s. By the 1850s the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Cambria Iron Company began, and the population increased. There were about 30,000 people in the area before the flood. The Western Reservoir was built in the 1840s, but became generally known as the South Fork dam. It was designed to supply extra water for the Main Line canal from Johnstown to Pittsburgh. By saving the spring floods, water could be released during the dry summers. When the dam was completed in 1852, the Pennsylvania Railroad completed the track from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, and the canal business began its decline. The state offered to sell the canal, the railroad company bought it for the right of ways yet had no need to maintain the dam, which due to neglect, broke for the first time in 1862. McCullough stresses that man was responsible for the...
The Central Artery Tunnel Project, more commonly known as the Big Dig, is said to be the largest, most complex and technologically challenging highway project in American history. It is the culmination of decades of planning and forethought and is hoped to alleviate the traffic congestion that has plagued the Boston area since the invention of the automobile. The project incorporates a major underground highway system, a revolutionary cable-stayed bridge, and a series of impressive tunnel crossings, each a considerable feat on their own, all constructed in the midst of a bustling city.
That project extended the beleaguered bridge at Florence in 1917. In the previous year, Congress reflected the nation’s quest to build roads and bridges by approving the Federal Road Aid Act of 1916 and President Woodrow Wilson signed the measure. Quickly, Arizona and Pinal County collaborated to raise the funds necessary to match $20,000 in federal aid. The project improved a bridge that remained in service until the late 1950s, when the Arizona Highway Department built a new one.
Quinn, R. (2008). Building the Bridge As You Walk On It. In J.L. Pierce, & J.W. Newstrom (Eds). The Manager’s Bookshelf (pp 233-236). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson