Another Postcard from the Duluth-Superior Hi Bridge

Paul Lundgren Jan 16, 2024 2 Comments

This early 1960s postcard, published by Gallagher’s Studio of Photography, shows the Blatnik Bridge before it was called the Blatnik Bridge. From 1961 to 1971 the bridge was called the Duluth-Superior Bridge and known colloquially as the “High Bridge,” though the name was often rendered as “Hi Bridge.” It was later named for Congressman John A. Blatnik.

The Blatnik is Minnesota’s second-longest bridge at 7,975 feet; the nearby Bong Bridge is the longest at 11,811.

The caption on the back of the postcard reads:

Duluth-Superior Hi Bridge
A Foreign Ship enters the Duluth-Superior Harbor, Westerly Terminus of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Port Authority is shown in the background.

The Blatnik is nearing the end of its functional lifespan and is expected to be replaced in the next decade. To read more about the replacement process, visit the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s I-535 Blatnik Bridge page.

Below is an alternate postcard featuring the same image, also published by Gallagher’s studio.

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2 Comments

hamptonio

about 11 months ago 

So in 1971 there was a High Bridge and a Bong Bridge...was that combination a reason for the renaming to Blatnik?

Paul Lundgren

about 11 months ago 

No, the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge didn't exist in 1971. It opened 1985. 

In 1971 there was the High Bridge and the Arrowhead Bridge.

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