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Today in Interstate History

President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

October 18, 1960

President Dwight D. Eisenhower participated in the dedication of the Hiawatha Bridge in Red Wing, Minnesota. The bridge, built to replace an older one that had been around since 1895, carries U.S. 63 over the Mississippi River between Minnesota and Wisconsin. While the highway involved was a state one, Eisenhower used the occasion to discuss the ongoing and future benefits of the Interstate System. "It gives the States primary responsibility and initiative within their own borders," he said about the highway network. "The program will eventually build 41,000 miles of Interstate highways . . . [W]hen the Interstate System is completed, it is estimated that it will save 4,000 lives every year."