Then and now: the Ambassador Bridge opened to traffic in November 1929

Then and now: the Ambassador Bridge opened to traffic Nov. 15, 1929. Its 1,850-foot main span was the world's longest suspension span until 1931. Nearly a century later, it still links Windsor and Detroit.

Topics: CommunityRoads and transit

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The Ambassador Bridge has carried traffic between Windsor and Detroit since November 1929.

Then

The general construction contract was signed July 20, 1927, and work became operative Aug. 16, 1927, according to Historic Detroit. The McClintic-Marshall Company of Pittsburgh was the general contractor and steel erector. The bridge was ready for operation on Nov. 11, 1929, and opened to traffic four days later, on Nov. 15.

When it opened, its 1,850-foot centre span was the longest suspension span in the world. The record stood until the George Washington Bridge between New York and New Jersey opened in 1931. Historic Detroit puts the total length at 7,490 feet, with the deck rising to 152 feet above the Detroit River and towers 386 feet high. The structure used almost 21,000 tons of steel.

The Windsor Star covered the opening on Nov. 12, 1929, with a page of photos that included officers of the Detroit International Bridge Company and their families on the span. One of those photos appears on this card.

Now

The bridge remains privately owned and tolled. It is maintained by the Detroit International Bridge Company and the Canadian Transit Company, and it has long been one of the busiest commercial crossings between Canada and the United States.

Photos: 1929, The Windsor Star (Nov. 12, 1929, p. 5), unknown photographer, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Today: Ken Lund, 2015, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.