Jim Sweeney with his wife, Marge, at the 2007 Mackinac Bridge walk. Mr. Sweeney worked on the Mackinac Bridge from the beginning of the construction project, and stayed longer to help paint the bridge upon its completion. (Sweeney family photograph) Ironworkers from all over the country and Canada will attend the International Ironworkers Festival in Mackinaw City Friday, August 7. The festival will celebrate those who pour their lives and skills into creating iron structures such as the Mackinac Bridge.

Jim Sweeney of St. Ignace and J.C. Stilwell of Mackinaw City are two such ironworkers. Both men helped build the Mackinac Bridge from 1954 to 1958, performing a variety of tasks from spinning the suspension cables to working on the foundation.

Mr. Sweeney had worked on concrete bridges when he was 17, and was introduced to the work by a friend he made in the Navy in 1943, an ironworker who suggested he give it a try.

Following his discharge from the service in 1946, Mr. Sweeney helped ironworkers working at a paper mill in Battle Creek. He performed odd jobs such as providing tools to the workers and assisting them with anything they required. By the time he joined the Mackinac Bridge project, he was a journeyman ironworker.

J.C. Stilwell of Mackinaw City stands in front of the spinning wheels originally used to spin suspension cable from one end of the Mackinac Bridge to the other. Mr. Stilwell worked on the Mackinac Bridge when construction started in 1954. As a foreman in 1954, Mr. Sweeney organized the sinking of the reinforced concrete caissons that were rest on the lake bottom and serve as foundations for the bridge towers.

Most ironworkers on the bridge worked on whatever was necessary, Mr. Stilwell said. He was responsible for transporting iron used from the bridge to wherever it was needed, and he also helped set the caissons in place in 1954.

Mr. Sweeney was no different, and joined a rivet gang in 1955 after he finished his work as a foreman. Most rivet gangs were comprised of four people, and Mr. Sweeney was responsible for driving rivets into place. One worker would heat the rivets in a forge to nearly 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit, then use long tongs to throw the red hot rivet to the catcher, who would catch it in a bucket, then position the rivet in the hole and hold it for the man with a pneumatic rivet gun, who would then lock the steel plates together.

A fourth man would work ahead of the rest, conducting preparation work so that the others could smoothly move to the next area.

Coordination was critical for riveting work, Mr. Sweeney said, and the process could change depending on where the riveting was done. If they were riveting inside of a structure, the catcher could shout into a long tube to tell the heater to stop or start sending rivets. If they were outside, the catcher could bang on the can to signal when he was or was not ready. Workers could be seriously injured if they were not paying attention.

The rivets were used everywhere on the bridge, from the roadways to the towers. More than 1,000 rivets were driven into the bridge by his gang in one day, Mr. Sweeney said.

Both men continued their work as jacks-of-all-trades in 1956. Mr. Sweeney left the riveting gang after a year and began spinning cables for the suspension of the bridge.

Spinning the cables was accomplished by using a spinning wheel that would pull the cables from one end of the bridge anchorage, over the towers, and to the end of the opposite anchorage.

Workers on the anchorages would then bundle the cables up, wrap them together with several other cables, and use a machine to apply tension on the cables. An equal amount of tension had to be applied to each cable, Mr. Sweeney said, or else they could snap.

Why did the men do such dangerous work?

Money was the primary reason why Mr. Stilwell got involved with the building of the bridge in 1954. Workers were paid $3.50 an hour and were able to make $300 each week, he recalled, while most people in downtown Mackinaw City made about $75 a week at the time.

Mr. Stilwell discovered it was enjoyable work. Being able to work outside with his hands was a pleasure, he said, and he enjoyed the camaraderie he developed with the other workers. Working on the bridge allowed him to meet some of the best men in the world, he recalls today.

The bridge was completed in 1957, and Mr. Stilwell continued with other iron working projects throughout the country.

Mr. Sweeney lingered on the job a bit longer and helped paint the bridge until 1958. He would later work on the International Bridge linking the United States with Canada at Sault Ste. Marie.

The Mackinac Bridge project cemented each man's pride as an ironworker. Mr. Stilwell established the Mackinac Bridgemen Museum in 1970 to preserve the history of the ironworkers involved in the project. The museum burned down in August 2005, and many of the items from the bridge were destroyed. Mr. Stilwell has since rebuilt the museum and has received equipment used during the construction of the bridge as donations.

The International Ironworkers Festival registration will begin Friday, August 7, at noon. A parade, skill competitions among ironworkers, and a live band performance will take place Saturday, August 8 and Sunday, August 9. The festival is open to the public, but only ironworkers and retirees can compete in the skilled events.

Ironworkers Festival Schedule of Events

Festival events take place behind Mackinaw City High School.

The parade will be along Central Avenue.

Friday, August 7 Noon to 5 p.m. - Registration
6 p.m. - Live Band and Dancing
Saturday, August 8
10 a.m. - Parade
11 a.m. - Kids Events
Noon - Skilled Events
6 p.m. - Live Band and Dancing
10 p.m. - Raffle Drawing
Sunday, August 9

10 a.m. - World Champion Column Climb

"Old Timers Events" and an award ceremony will follow the end of the column climb.