Houghton and Hancock Accept Historic Landmark Plaques for the Portage Lake Lift Bridge

Today the Portage Lake Lift Bridge earned a new milestone achievement. This morning ASCE Society President, Dennis Truax presented Houghton City Clerk Ann Volrath and Hancock Mayor Paul LaBine with placards commemorating the lift bridge as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. A small crowd gathered at Bridgeview Park in Houghton heard from Michigan’s DOT Director Paul Ajegba, ASCE-Michigan Section President, Andrew Russell, MDOT Ishpeming TSC Engineer, Alan Anderson and one of the designers of the lift bridge, Tom D’Arcy. Who traveled back to the area from his home in Texas for the special occasion.

And I still live up here, so every time I do cross it now. I think about all the work we did for this nomination, all the history, all the people who were behind it. And, jsut how, tucked away in this, almost middle of nowhere place we have such a unique structure. – Michael Prast, 2019 Michigan Tech Alumni

MTU alum, Emma Beachy and Michael Prast, helped to get the lift bridge its nomination as a landmark while they attended Michigan Tech Professor, Tess Ahlborn’s classes. Both feel a connection to the bridge after living in the area, and understanding the humble job of being a civil engineer.

Houghton and Hancock Accept Historic Landmark Plaques for the Portage Lake Lift Bridge

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