The Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge, also known as the Bong Bridge, connects Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...

 with Superior, Wisconsin

Superior, Wisconsin

Superior is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 26,960 at the 2010 census. Located at the junction of U.S. Highways 2 and 53, it is north of and adjacent to both the Village of Superior and the Town of Superior.Superior is at the western...

 via U.S. Highway 2

U.S. Route 2

U.S. Route 2 is an east–west U.S. Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected by various roadways in southern Canada...

. Opened on October 25, 1985, it is roughly 11,800 feet (3,600 meters) long. About 8,300 feet (2,500 meters) of that length is actually over water. It crosses over the Saint Louis Bay

Saint Louis River

The St. Louis River is a river in the U.S. states of Minnesota and Wisconsin that flows into Lake Superior. The largest U.S. river to flow into the lake, it is 179 miles in length and starts near Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota. The river's watershed is in area...

 that drains into Lake Superior

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...

. The bridge’s namesake, Richard Ira Bong

Richard Bong

Richard Ira "Dick" Bong is the United States' highest-scoring air ace, having shot down at least 40 Japanese aircraft during World War II. He was a fighter pilot in the U.S. Army Air Forces and a recipient of the Medal of Honor...

, was a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II and was named the United States' all time "Ace of Aces

Flying ace

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...

". The bridge was originally to be named the Arrowhead Bridge after the old wood trestle-bascule bridge

Bascule bridge

A bascule bridge is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances the span, or "leaf," throughout the entire upward swing in providing clearance for boat traffic....

which it replaced in 1985. The bridge's central suspension section is made of Japanese steel.

The bridge is also noted for a major sixteen vehicle pile-up that occurred on January 27, 2005, in which a newborn baby was killed and 10 people were hospitalized.

The bridge is one of the largest public works projects ever undertaken by the state of Wisconsin. Ayres Associates, an architectural/engineering company based in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, designed the 1.5-mile length of approach bridges and was responsible for overall project management. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation designed the channel span (tied arch).

In 2007, the Bong Bridge won a Wonders of Wisconsin Engineering Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies, Wisconsin Chapter. The award program was held in recognition of the chapter's 50th anniversary.