Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth

• Construction start: 1929
• Construction finish: 1930
• Designed by: C.P. Turner and Thomas F. McGilvray
• Type: Bridge
• Maximum Height: 227 feet / 69 meters
• Maximum Length: 386 feet / 118 meters

• 29 March, 1930: The tug boat Essayons becomes the first vessel to pass beneath the operating lift bridge.

• When open, the bridge clearance is 138 feet. When closed, it is 15 feet.

There are 10 comments.

  Portland, Oregon, has three antecedents to the Duluth bridge using a vertical lift design, and two more recent. Of course, what makes the Duluth bridge spectacular is the truss span at the top that used to carry the platform across before the vertical lift traffic span was added. Portland's Hawthorne Bridge(1910), also designed by Waddell, is the oldest operating vertical lift bridge in the U.S. (and world?).The Steel Bridge (1912) is unique in being a double-deck vertical lift bridge that can lift the lower deck only (it telescopes into the upper) or both. It is also one of the world's most multi-modal, carrying pedestrians, bicycles, buses, light rail, streetcars and autos on the upper deck, plus heavy rail, pedestrians and bicycles on the lower. Both of these bridges are in the city center and heavily used. Also in Portland is the 1989 vertical lift portion of a railroad bridge, the fourth-highest vertical lift in the world; and the 1917/58 Interstate Bridge with twin vertical lifts at the main channel.

Victor Graf - Wednesday, April 29th, 2009 @ 3:34pm  

  I stayed at The Suites just down from the bridge. I usually go to Duluth every year for the North Shore Rod Run. Park Point is an amazing place! The bridge is absolutely amazing itself, and what's a better place to relax and get one's mind off things than the stone beaches of Lake Superior and a gorgeous bridge in the background! It's definately a place to take family just as a get away. There is one shop. I don't recall its name but they have amazing chocolates and candies for sale. They are steeper in price but are most definatly worth it. Grandma's Sports Bar is a great place to eat if you're just wanting a burger. Amazing food and good service is always a plus on a trip!

Erin Wiltse - Tuesday, November 25th, 2008 @ 12:16pm  

  I spent a pleasant night staying in a hotel near the bridge in Duluth. The atmosphere was great and the bridge made a fine backdrop. The speed it opened was quite impresive

Nick - Monday, August 18th, 2008 @ 1:52pm  

  Many years ago I lived on the first house on the point after crossing the bridge. I also spent the night pumping water out of the basement the night the Edmunds Fitzgerald sank on the lake becuase of the storm. What a wonderful bridge and history it has!

Mark Tingey - Thursday, March 22nd, 2007 @ 10:50pm  

  Louisville Kentucky has a lift bridge very similar to the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge over the Ohio River, although it is not as tall, and it carries rail traffic not street traffic.

Christian - Saturday, March 3rd, 2007 @ 11:46am  

  when i lived in duluth i used to go to the bridge to get my mind off of things. The view is so amazing. it can make even the sadest person have a smile.

Angela LaLonde - Friday, December 15th, 2006 @ 10:13am  

  Once upon a lifetime, there was no Canal Park, just a mess of metal buildings, falling down factories and miscellaneous 'stuff' I lived in Superior, Wisconsin at the time. This was my favorite place to hang out. Lunch or dinner at Grandma's and a chance to watch the bridge in action. They certaily did a wonerful job turing it into a primo tourist attraction. Hopefully all this developmnt has been a good thing for the locals who make it their home as well as the tourists who 'spend and run' or worse, those who 'buy a place' to come and play on weekends. I now live on an island off the coast of Maine and still miss the big pond and those tourist-free days.

Morgan Lintereur - Wednesday, December 13th, 2006 @ 2:58am  

  My family visited this site when I was about 7 years old. I remember standing underneath the bridge as it was descending, and feeling terrified that is was going to crush me. But, Dad said it would just fine, and, of course, it was. This is a really cool bridge, by the way! (And it does not crush people)

Dave - Friday, December 31st, 2004 @ 11:00am