August 13, 1962
The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Bridge linking the community of Lubec, Maine, and Canada’s Campobello Island – where the 32nd U.S. president maintained a summer retreat – was dedicated. The international bridge, measuring 847 feet (258.2 meters) in length, crosses over the Lubec Narrows at the edge of the Bay of Fundy and connects Maine State Route 189 with New Brunswick Route 774.
The bridge was designed by the Maine State Highway Commission, and the costs for building that structure were shared equally by the United States and Canada. The bridge remains Campobello Island’s only road linkage with the North American mainland; ferries are the island’s transportation connection to the remainder of New Brunswick.
Dozens of public officials and approximately 5,000 other people were on hand as U.S. Congressman James Roosevelt, a Democrat from California and the late president’s oldest child, cut the ribbon to open the bridge. (The president’s widow, Eleanor Roosevelt, was unable to attend the ceremony due to ill health; she died less than three months later.) While not giving a speech at the event, Congressman Roosevelt did tell reporters that the bridge was “a fine symbol in these days where walls are being built in other parts of the world.”
Those speaking at the ceremony included Maine Governor John H. Reed and New Brunswick Premier Louis J. Robichaud. Reed emphasized President Roosevelt’s close ties with the region. “It was here that he knew pleasure and relaxation, where he began his successful fight to overcome the effects of crippling illness, and where he spent many hours while bearing the burdens of our nation through peace and war,” said Reed. “I am sure that President Roosevelt would look upon this bridge with pride today.”
For more information on the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Bridge, please check out http://lubec.mainememory.net/page/3250/display%3Fpage=1.html.
Transportation History 
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