The Franklin D. Roosevelt Bridge

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Bridge is an international bridge, which connects Maine State Route 189 in the community of Lubec, Maine in the United States with New Brunswick Route 774 on Campobello Island.  The bridge is named for former President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who maintained a summer retreat on the island. It is the island's only road connection to the mainland of North America; all of the island's transportation connections to the rest of New Brunswick are by ferry. And that ferry does only run during a short period in the summer. The “FDR” Bridge is the life nerve of this little island society. And it wouldn’t have been build without the Establishment of the Roosevelt Campobello International Park in 1964. Before the bridge was build a rather primitive car ferry was connecting the two countries. However, the tidal current in the “Narrows” is so strong that it was bordering to a masterpiece to navigate the ferry across. The crew always had to aim to a point upstream from the point of landing, in order not to miss it entirely. Tidal currents are changing their intensity all the time. At the top of High Tide and at the bottom of low tide there is no current to speak of. With an increasing difference from high to low or from low to high the speed of the water increases. In fact the speed is so high that fish have a hard time not to be drawn along with it. That is the reason why seals are always hanging out below the Mulholland Lighthouse, waiting for the fish to swim by. Thanks to the tides they enjoy having regular meals, much to the pleasure of our summer visitors who are looking down to them from land. History In 1958, the Canadian government passed the Campobello-Lubec Bridge Act providing for the framework for the construction of the span. Following a few years of planning, the bridge opened to traffic in 1962, with its official dedication occurring on August 5, 1962. Thanks for stopping by again!