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Category Archives: Bridges

The Swinging Bridge in the Thumb

Posted on June 16, 2025 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges, Thumb .

While the Mackinac Bridge rightfully claims the title of Michigan’s longest suspension bridge for vehicular traffic, a lesser-known but equally significant structure holds the record for the state’s longest foot suspension bridge: the charming crossing in Croswell. Situated in the base of the Thumb, approximately thirty miles north of Port Huron, the town of Croswell lies along the banks of the Black River, the site of this unique pedestrian span. This 139-foot-long suspension bridge was erected in 1905 by the Michigan Sugar Company with the practical purpose of facilitating the safe passage of its workers across the Black River.

The original design of the bridge was rather rudimentary, consisting of only two supporting cables for the wooden planks and, surprisingly, no handrails for balance. Traversing such a structure must have been a precarious undertaking, and one can easily imagine the potential for missteps and an unexpected plunge into the river below. Adding a touch of local character, signs were installed at each end of the bridge. On the west side, a sign humorously advised, “Be good to your Mother In Law,” while the east side offered a more sentimental message: “Love Ye One Another.” These signs likely served as a gentle deterrent to prevent playful or mischievous individuals from swinging the bridge.

Recognizing the inherent instability of the original design, two additional cables were added a few years after its construction, providing much-needed handholds for pedestrians. In 2006, the bridge underwent a significant restoration project that included the replacement of all 135 planks, ensuring its safety and allowing visitors to continue enjoying this historic footbridge. It is a fun and weird experiance crossing the bridge as it sways and bounces. I think everyone should cross it at least once.

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The Fallasburg Bridge

Posted on July 23, 2024 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges, Ghost towns .

Michigan has only a few covered bridges that you can drive your vehicle across. One of those bridges is the historic Fallasburg Bridge a few miles north of Lowell near Grand Rapids. To get to the bridge from Lowell you need to go through Bridge Park that sits along the Flat River. Doc Brown from Back To The Future built a time machine, but if you ever want to travel back in time all you have to do is drive across the Fallasburg Bridge. Just be sure not to go 88 miles per hour as the sign on the bridge states “$5 fine for riding or driving on this bridge faster than a walk. ”

John and Silas Fallas came to the area from New York in 1837 and built a sawmill and chair factory. The Flat River and hardwood forests that lined it made an excellent location for lumbering. They built a grist mill for grinding grains, which powered by a waterwheel turned by the current of the river. The biggest challenge they faced was crossing the river. In 1840 the brothers built the first bridge to cross the river. This bridge was destroyed by the ice flows and rising water in the spring. The next two bridges survived a little while longer and the town began to prosper. With the sawmill, grist mill and bridge the town thrived. The main road from Grand Rapids to Detroit came through the town that had been named after the brothers. The town of Fallasburg began to decline after the railroad decided the train would pass through the nearby town of Lowell, bypassing the once bustling little community. The covered bridge was built in 1871 in hopes that it would make traveling to the town easier but the iron horse was far superior to the real ones that pulled wagons. After the dam was built in Lowell the river no longer flowed like it used to, and the once mighty river no longer had the power to run the mill. The town basically disappeared from the map after that.

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The I-75 Draw Bridge

Posted on June 2, 2024 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

The Niagara passing under the old I-75 drawbridge and the new Zilwaukee bridge in the background under construction.

Before the Zilwaukee bridge was opened to traffic in December of 1987 a draw bridge was built over the Saginaw River for I-75. It opened daily for the Niagara nicknamed “The Sandsucker” It sucked sand off the bottom of Lake Huron for the General Motors Iron Foundry and traveled to Saginaw nearly every day. When the draw bridge opened for ships, traffic would be backed up for miles, especially on a holiday weekend. It took nine years to build the current Zilwaukee Bridge. The ironic thing is by the time the bridge was finished, the foundry no longer used the Niagara to get sand and ships occasionally came that far up into the river.

I grew up in the shadow of the bridge in the the township of Carrollton. I still remember the traffic backups as a kid and my dad traveling through downtowns Saginaw to avoid the highway. I still live close to the Z-bridge, but I rarely travel over it because of where my house is located off I-675. I could not even imagine what traffic would be like if the old draw bridge was there today and opened on a holiday weekend.

P.S. An interesting thing to note is how Zilwaukee got its name. In 1854 Zilwaukee Township was formed and as the story goes the village was named Zilwaukee with the hopes it would confuse immigrants coming into New York thinking they are going to Milwaukee Wisconsin.

If you love reading about strange Michigan history or exploring the Great Lakes State, I hope you will take a look at Lost In Michigan books. They make for a great Father’s Day gift. I just released my Lost In Michigan’s Ghost Town book available on Amazon HERE

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The Big Green Bridge

Posted on February 7, 2024 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

I have driven over the Mackinac Bridge many times and I got to wondering about how it got its colors.

When the bridge was being constructed and ad agency was working with  Chrysler who was supplying engines and equipment used to build the bridge. The agency featured the bridge in an advertisement. According to the St. Ignace News. At the time, colors hadn’t been selected for the bridge, so the company chose ivory for the towers and foliage green for the trusses under the roadway.

 

The Bridge Authority members and engineers saw the advertisement and liked it, so they used the color scheme on the completed bridge. And it has been the same color ever since.

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Other SkyBridges in Michigan

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

The SkyBridge at Boyne Mountain ski resort is the largest timbered suspension bridge. Maybe you have already experienced it, or it is out of your budget for your family, but you want to walk across some amazing foot bridges. There are a few other bridges in Michigan that are free to explore. They may not be as impressive as the SkyBridge but they are still fun to walk across.

The Little Mac Footbridge

The Little Mac Foot Bridge crosses the Manistee River near the Hodenpyl Dam a few miles from Mesick. The wooden suspension bridge is 245 feet long. It is on the Manistee River Trail which is also part of the 4600 mile North Country Trail from Vermont to North Dakota. You don’t have to hike halfway across the country to visit this bridge, a parking area is on the west side of the river near the bridge. You can access it with your vehicle from Hodenpyl Dam road. You can see it on Google Maps HERE

Pigeon River Footbridge

This foot bridge crosses over the Pigeon River in the Agnes S. Andreae Nature Preserve near Indian River. The preserve has five miles of hiking trails that wind their way along the river. It is also home to the Nature Megaphone that you can read about in my post HERE  You can find it on Google Maps HERE 

Two Hearted River Bridge

Way up north of Newberry the Two Hearted River flows into Lake Superior. A one of a kind suspension bridge with wood planking spans the river for hikers to cross over it. The bridge located in the state forest campground and leads over to a sandy beach with rocks along the shoreline.  It is a strange feeling walking over the bridge as it bounces and sways, or maybe I just need to lose some weight. If you are ever up that way, It is a long trip down dirt roads but it is a unique experience to walk across the bridge. You can see it on Google Maps HERE

Black River Footbridge 

The Black River  in the western side of the Upper Peninsula empties into Lake Superior not far from the Wisconsin Border. At the mouth of the river is the Black River Harbor managed by the National Forest Service. The 210 foot suspension bridge was built in 1938 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It was reconstructed in 1967 and refurbished in 2009. The bridge is part of the North Country Scenic Trail and allows hikers to cross the Black River wit a spectacular view as it bounces and sways as you cross it.  You can find it on Google Maps HERE 

Presque Isle Suspension Bridge

The Presque Isle River flows through the western side of the Porcupine Mountains State Park. Manabezho Falls, Manido Falls, and Nawadaha Falls are falls along the river that can be viewed in the park. Near the mouth of the river is a campground and a wooden suspension bridge for hikers to cross over the river and into ninety miles of trails through the vast park’s wilderness. The location can be seen on Google Maps HERE

Croswell Swinging Bridge

Croswell swinging bridge

The small town of Croswell is located in the Thumb along the Black River. ( a different Black River than the one in the U.P. ) The historic bridge was built in 1905 by the Michigan Sugar Company for their workers to cross the river to get to work. The original bridge had just two cables which were used to support the planks, I can’t imagine walking across it without anything to hold onto, my clumsy self would fall in for sure. I am thinking the origins of the signs ” Be good to your Mother In Law” and “love Ye One Another” that was at the other end is an attempt to keep mischievous people from swinging the bridge. Eventually, Two more cables were added to provide a handhold. You can see the location on Google Maps HERE

If you love exploring Michigan, I hope you will take a look at my Lost In Michigan books ON SALE at Amazon HERE

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The New Old Bridge

Posted on June 7, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

Whites Bridge crosses over the Flat River south of Smyrna. The bridge that stands today is a replica of a bridge that was built in 1870. The original bridge was destroyed in 1983, by an arsonist that set fire to the historic structure. The new bridge was constructed and opened to traffic in 2020. It may not be the original but it is a beautiful looking bridge and a joy to drive across it.

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The Concrete Bridges of McCourtie Park

Posted on March 16, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges, Parks .

On US-12 in the town of Somerset Center is McCourtie Park. The park has some wonderful concrete bridges that span a little creek which flows through the park. A Historical marker tells the stories of these bridges and the park:

Somerset Center native W. H. L. McCourtie (1872 – 1933) was introduced to the cement industry by W. F. Cowham of Jackson in 1897. McCourtie soon went to Dallas, Texas, where he made a fortune speculating in oil and established the Trinity Portland Cement Company. During the 1920s McCourtie returned to Somerset Center. In 1924 he acquired his family’s home and turned it into a community showplace. McCourtie sought to create a model town. He gave free white paint to any home owner that needed it. He also hosted the community’s annual homecoming celebration. Thousands of people came to “Aiden Lair” to witness stunt flyers and enjoy baseball, local musicians, dancing and unlimited refreshments. At the height of the Great Depression, McCourtie offered his estate as a place “Where Friends Meet Friends and Part More Friendly.”

The W. H. L. McCourtie Estate may contain the country’s largest collection of el trabeio rustico, the Mexican folk tradition of sculpting concrete to look like wood. Around 1930, most likely inspired by work he had seen in Texas, cement tycoon W. H. L. McCourtie hired itinerant Mexican artisans George Cardoso and Ralph Corona to construct seventeen bridges on his property. The artisans formed the bridges with steel rods and then hand sculpted wet concrete to resemble planed lumber, rough logs, thatch, and rope. Different species of trees can be identified. Two concrete trees that stand on the property continue to serve as chimneys for the underground rathskellar and garage. The McCourtie estate is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

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Holz-Brücke

Posted on January 26, 2023 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

Next to the Bavarian Inn located in Frankenmuth is the Holz-Brücke. German for “wooden Bridge” it crosses the Cass River. Built in 1980 it is not as old as many other covered bridges but being over 40 years old you could probably say it is historic. I remember driving over it with my grandparents when I was a kid shortly after it was constructed. If I remember correctly, back then you had to purchase a token from the Bavarian Inn to cross over it. Now it is open to any vehicle and leads to the parking lot of the Bavarian Inn Lodge and a thrill to drive across.

P.S. This weekend is Snowfest in Frankenmuth. If you are going to be there, be sure to stop at Charlin’s Book Nook  in the River Place Shops and say Hello. They carry all of my Lost In Michigan books.

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Bridge

Posted on October 16, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Bridges .

The Little Mac Foot Bridge crosses the Manistee River near the Hodenpyl Dam a few miles from Mesick. The wooden suspension bridge is 245 feet long. It is on the Manistee River Trail which is also part of the 4600 mile North Country Trail from Vermont to North Dakota. You don’t have to hike halfway across the country to visit this bridge, a parking area is on the west side of the river near the bridge. You can access it with your vehicle from Hodenpyl Dam road.

P.S. On the east side of the river along the  Manistee River Trail is a little known small waterfall. You can read about it in my post HERE

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The Mini Mac

Posted on September 24, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Bridges .

In the central Michigan town of St. Louis is a bridge affectionately known as the Mini Mac Bridge. It is off M-46 at the Mini Mac Mini Storage facility. I have driven through St Louis many times and I never knew this little bridge was there. You can’t see it from M-46 and I did not know about it until recently. It was built in 1992 by the storage facility’s original owner. During the summer months it is open for people to walk across it. The replica bridge is amazing in its construction with grates in the center and lights on the towers. It is located between US-127 and St. Louis and a neat little bridge to see if you are in the area.

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