Looking Back: 75 years later, the trials and triumphs of Charlevoix's Memorial Bridge
Third of four in a series recognizing the 75th anniversary of the dedication of Charlevoix’s current Memorial Bridge on July 30, 1949.
CHARLEVOIX — Both during and after construction of the sixth bridge across the lower channel, changes occurred throughout the community, some good, some not so good, and a few a bit funny.
The construction, which lasted over two years, caused a love/hate relationship of its own which spread far beyond Charlevoix. For example, the town’s rooming houses were filled year round with construction workers and engineers to the extent that the owners couldn’t rent out during the summer to tourists or resorters of modest incomes who had been vacationing in their establishments for years. There was no place for them to economically stay. The larger and more expensive seasonal hotels stood beyond their reach.
The restaurants enjoyed a highly welcome post-war boom period during the off season. A few local men were hired to work on the bridge, and several of the men who came from elsewhere were so taken with Charlevoix that they remained to establish their family roots in the community.
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A long downside was major disruptions. Clouds of construction dust and dirt from the bridge excavations blew into houses and businesses all over town. One woman on south Bridge Street near the Catholic Church claimed that if she didn’t dust and sweep her house at least twice a day she would have to bring in a shovel. The noise, plus underfeet jolts, of the pounding was horrendous and often lasted far into the night because the small army of workers was on the job around the clock.
After all these years, I can still remember the chinaware in our kitchen cupboard, on Park Avenue a block from Bridge Street, bouncing and rattling for days on end, and the windows all around the house shuddering and knocking in their old wooden frames.
Customers who patronized the two grocery stores nearest the bridge, Martin Block’s where the Paddlewheel/Bridge Street Tap Room are now, and the Kroger store across the street at the Elements/Taffy Barrel site, often had to revert to an archaic system of bringing or phoning in their lists for home delivery. When the pounding was going on, they weren’t allowed to enter and traverse the store aisles because the stacked canned goods could vibrate enough to move right off the shelves and onto the floor. Tin cans actually became airborne after a particularly strong whammo.
Businessmen next to the construction on both sides of the bridge had to endure the 100 block of Bridge Street and the first section of Michigan Avenue being blocked off. Heavy truck traffic through town, much of it related to the bridge, was constant, bringing its own dirt and vibrations. Whenever larger vessels entered or left Round Lake, the construction barge had to be moved into the harbor to make way, then returned, resulting in what seemed to be endless traffic delays.
For one man, all of this became a constant irritant. The temporary roadway intersected East Dixon Avenue on the north side next door to the home of Bob Bridge, president of the Charlevoix County State Bank and one of the most influential people in town. This former mayor, in office before World War II began, had been the biggest enthusiast for bringing a new bridge to Charlevoix. However, when it became a reality he was now furious that the temporary U.S. 31 would pass within a few yards of his residence day and night with all the concomitant noise, dust and gasoline fumes. But the property between him and his neighbor had belonged to the Charlevoix Lumber Company for years, which gave permission, and there was also the factor of eminent domain. Besides, the highway had nowhere else to go.
Next week: Tales of the bridge.
To honor this important anniversary year, on Tuesday, July 16 this writer and the Charlevoix Historical Society will be presenting a completely illustrated program on the eventful history of all six of Charlevoix’s lower channel bridges at the Charlevoix Public Library Community Room, 6 p.m., admission free. Call (231) 547-0373 for more information.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Looking Back: The trials and triumphs of Charlevoix's Memorial Bridge
