Missisquoi Bay Bridge (replaced) – Alburg to Swanton VT

Description

The federal Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $214,363 grant for the construction of the original Missiquoi Bay Bridge connecting Alburgh and Swanton, Vermont. Approval for the project was given in January 1936. Construction began in June 1936 and was largely completed April 1938. The project’s total cost was $559,145. The bridge replaced a ferry crossing near the location of its construction.

The Brattleboro Reformer: “The bridge, it iss expected will, cross the bay at a point a short distance north of the present ferry crossing. It will consist of an 800-foot steel span in the center with approximately 4,200 feet of fill making up the approaches from the East Alburg and West Swanton shores of the lake.”

Lake Champlain Maritime Museum: “April 10, 1938 saw the opening of the Missisquoi Bay Bridge connecting the towns of Swanton in Franklin County, Vermont and Alburg in Grande Isle County, Vermont, and the closing of a long and complex series of events relating to its construction.”

A replacement bridge opened in 2007, and the PWA structure is no longer extant. However, the Toll House that used to be located on the Swanton side of the bridge was relocated to the Swanton Historical Society’s “Railroad Depot Museum” and restored. It can be viewed there today.