Five Construction Deaths and the Straits' Lasting Legends
Mackinaw City, MI
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Standard toll applies to cross the bridge; pedestrian crossing permitted on Labor Day only. Scenic drive-by from both shores is free.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Paved roadway; vehicle crossing only except Labor Day walk
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1957 · Engineering Landmark · Construction Deaths Memorial · Michigan Heritage
Construction on the Mackinac Bridge began in 1954, connecting Michigan's Upper and Lower Peninsulas across the Straits of Mackinac — five miles of open water between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. The engineering project required years of preparatory work; earlier proposals to span the straits dated back to the 1880s.
Five workers died during construction. Frank Pepper died September 16, 1954, in a diving accident. James R. LeSarge died October 10, 1954, after falling in a caisson while welding. Albert Abbott died October 25, 1954, when he fell into the water and drowned. Jack C. Baker and Robert Koppen both died June 6, 1956, after falling approximately 550 feet from a temporary catwalk near the north tower. Baker's body was recovered immediately; a three-day search for Koppen yielded nothing. All five workers were honored with a commemorative plaque dedicated at a public ceremony in May 2004 by the Michigan Department of Transportation and Mackinac Bridge Authority.
A popular urban legend holds that one of these workers was buried within the concrete bridge supports. The Mackinac Bridge Authority states definitively that this is false — all but one body was recovered and none are entombed in the structure.
The bridge opened to traffic on November 1, 1957. It carries approximately four million vehicles annually. On September 22, 1989, Leslie Ann Pluhar died when her 1987 Yugo compact car lost control and struck an outer railing, eventually clearing the side into the water. She survived the 170-foot fall but died from injuries. In March 1997, a Ford Bronco went over the railing in an incident later ruled a suicide.
Sources
The most persistent paranormal claim about the Mackinac Bridge is auditory: the sound of a baby crying, heard by drivers crossing or standing near the structure. According to a 2008 update appended to the original Shadowlands report, both documented accidents in 1989 and 1997 involved adult drivers — neither mentioned an infant victim. The Mackinac Bridge Authority's publicly available accident history does not record any fatal incident involving a child.
The origin of the crying-baby legend is unclear. It shares structural similarities with Michigan's several "crybaby bridge" traditions, a folklore archetype found across the state in which a bridge becomes associated with the sound of an infant following a tragedy — real or apocryphal. Whether the Mackinac legend emerged independently or borrowed from that tradition has not been established by any source located during research.
The five construction deaths and the two over-the-railing vehicle incidents provide enough documented tragedy to anchor atmospheric feeling without embellishment. Drivers crossing in high winds, with the steel grating visible through the roadway and Lake Michigan stretching in both directions, report a visceral awareness of the 199 feet of open air beneath the travel lanes. Whether that sensation accounts for reported auditory phenomena is a matter visitors can assess for themselves.
The 26,372-foot suspension span connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas across the Straits of Mackinac. Five workers died during its 1954-1957 construction; a memorial plaque was dedicated to them in 2004. High winds periodically close the bridge to certain vehicle types — a reminder of the 1989 incident in which Leslie Ann Pluhar's Yugo was swept over the railing.
Once a year on Labor Day, the Mackinac Bridge Authority closes the bridge to traffic and invites the public to walk its full length — 26,372 feet from the St. Ignace side to Mackinaw City. The annual walk has drawn tens of thousands of participants.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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