Steel Bridge Milestone

That was the day Door County would celebrate the opening of the 140-foot center-span steel bridge, the longest of its kind in the state.

As the cars and bands, veterans and floats assembled to participate in the parade a special awareness of being a part of history created a nervous anticipation. As the Sturgeon Bay and Algoma bands banged their drums and blew their horns warming up for the parade, it meant that the only bridge they had ever known, the old wooden toll bridge, just to the north of the new steel bridge, would become a relic of the past. They had received postcards in the mail from the Utility Commission reminding families that it was their “Last Chance to Pay to Ride the Toll Bridge over Sturgeon Bay.” That seemed funny to the youth, anxious as they always are, to move into the future and to do something better.

Civil War veterans James Falk, W. B. Lindsley, John Maase and George Wiesner could recall a time when no bridge crossed the water, a time of commercial ferries and crossing over on the ice in the winter. They remember, ruefully, the public referendum of 1872 which revealed little interest and even less support for a bridge of any kind. With an estimated cost between $16,000 and $18,000, they worried about the impact on their taxes and resisted a change in the way they had always known. Residents could not work up enough enthusiasm for a bridge until Leathem & Smith, sensing the future need for a bridge, offered to pay the bill for its construction. Timbers from Chambers Island were used on a project that would soon balloon to a cost of $30,000. At its opening in 1887, 3,000 people were in attendance. Interestingly enough, the toll bridge proved to be a smart investment earning $25,000 a year. In 1891, the Ahnapee & Western (A&W) Railway received grants totaling $76,000 from the city and county to construct a rail line to Sturgeon Bay. A rail crossing was completed in 1894 by attaching tracks to the toll bridge and constructing a new western rail approach. It was usable but the combination of rail and wooden planks made for rough passage and it was clear in the mid-1920s that a better way across Sturgeon Bay was necessary.

To the businessmen the new steel bridge was a proverbial gold mine, opening the beauty of the county to tourism and creating business opportunities as well. Even in 1929 when Wausau Iron Works won the bid of $386,826.77, the future of the county began to be shaped as the concrete piers were driven into the bedrock. Beginning in mid-November 1929, one by one, the supports were proof that the construction was on track. The deepest pier was 47 feet below water level and rested on heads of about 100 60-foot piles. Locals were curious about the construction, watching from the banks as it took shape and became an “elegant, modern crossing, a steel invitation” to enter the county with style and ease.

Kids of all ages had lined the shore watching in amazement as the silent steel structure suddenly began to move and the drawbridge reached upward, stretching its arms into the sky. To residents accustomed to the sight of a bridge swiveling sideways allowing the passage of boats, the raising of the bridge was truly something to see, with its 140- foot draw (the largest in the state).

Little thought was given to the 1,446 tons of structural steel, or to the 11,200 tons of concrete exclusive of the counter weights that themselves weighed 222 tons each. The 1,600 gallons of paint used to paint the bridge mattered little. The structure, consisting of seven high truss spans, one bascule span and five short concrete spans on the east side of the bridge was not in question. What was of major importance was the design. Designed by the Wisconsin State Highway commission to withstand the windy Sturgeon Bay area and to hold up to the heavy vehicular traffic, the bridge was considered beautiful by many but ugly by a few. Debates as to its aesthetic beauty served as a source of debate around the lunch tables in the area.

The military men in the parade had a special reason to be proud. Not only would they be leading the parade, they were aware that at the opening of the new bridge a dedication would take place making the steel beauty spanning the canal the largest war memorial in the state. The plan was for them, as well the Civil War veterans, to lead the 75-unit parade through streets on the east side of the bay until the procession would flow over the old wooden toll bridge upon which two remembrance wreaths would be placed. They would then march to the new steel bridge where Door County board chairman Ralph Jenquin would cut the red, white and blue ribbon opening the bridge to traffic. Mayor James G. Martin, representing the city of Sturgeon Bay, cut a similar ribbon at the east side mouth of the bridge.

As the parade snaked its way through the city streets to the old wooden bridge thousands of dignitaries, locals and tourists lined the sidewalks and the bridges to take part in this historic moment. Little thought was given and no tears were shed as the celebration crossed the old structure that had served the city and county for 47 years and would soon be turned over to the Ahnapee & Western railroad for its sole use. The procession watched as Mrs. Grant Minor placed two memorial wreathes. They hit solid ground on the west side and proudly headed for the new steel bridge where Chairman Jenquin waited with his scissors. Military men from Milwaukee waited to pull the American flags from the plaques. The soldiers came to a brief halt as the ribbons were cut with a flourish and the flags pulled from the bronze reminders. For just a moment, as the trained warriors of the country read the plaques, heads were bowed, flags slightly dipped and tears filled their eyes.

“Dedicated to Honor Those of Door County Who Answered Their Countries Call & Gave Their Services in Time of Emergency.”