Identifier:
200529
Description:
This car was the first vehicle to cross the newly completed Mackinac Bridge on November 1, 1957. It is a green, six-cylinder Chevrolet Deluxe Station Wagon. It was owned by Al Carter, who loved to be first wherever he traveled. Born in 1915, the Chicago resident became a big-band drummer in the 1930s. Disappointed that he couldn't be the first paying customer at the 1933 Worlds Fair in Chicago, he was determined to be first at everything else. He did become the first paying customer at ten subsequent Worlds Fairs, as well as the openings of such landmarks as the Gateway Arch and the Sears Tower. Driving this car more then 300,000 miles, Mr. Carter was the first motorist to drive the Tri-State, Kennedy, Eisenhower, Stevenson, and Dan Ryan Expressways, the first to make the round trip between Chicago and Detroit on Interstate-94, and of course, the first to officially cross the Mackinac Bridge.
Date:
1950 – 1951
Materials:
Metal, Rubber, Fabric, Glass
Dimensions:
69" h 84" w 204" d
Current Location Status:
In Storage
Collection Tier:
Tier 2
Source:
Gift Of The Mackinac Bridge Authority
Related Entities:
Motors Corporation (creator)
Mackinac Bridge Authority (donor)
Related Object:
