Did You Know There Used to Be a Toll to Cross This Maine Bridge?

If you live, work, or shop in Augusta, there is a good chance that you occasionally cross the Kennebec River via the Memorial Bridge.

As a guy who lives and works in Augusta, I am always crossing that bridge.  I use the bridge to get from home to Hannaford, from work to pick up my daughter at school, and to see my friends at Damon’s Beverage.  Sometimes, I cross the bridge four or five times a day.

Apparently, back in the middle of the 20^th century, this would have been a pricey habit.

Augusta's Memorial Bridge

Built in 1949, Memorial Bridge is 2,100 feet long and crosses the mighty Kennebec River.  The bridge has one eastbound lane, one westbound lane, and a sidewalk on each side.

Like many modern bridges, Memorial Bridge has a high fence on each side.  This is to prevent people from jumping from the bridge.  Given its proximity to the state mental hospital, there had been several suicides on the bridge.  The fence, installed in 1983, has prevented this from happening.

When it opened, there was a toll to cross Memorial Bridge

According to a 2016 Facebook post from the Augusta Police Department, Memorial Bridge started its life as a toll bridge.

Construction of a large bridge (by Maine standards) is not cheap.  So a toll was charged to pay for the bridge.

According to the Facebook post, the price of a one-way ticket was 10 cents.  That is the equivalent of $1.25 in 2024 money.  However, you could buy a pass booklet of ten ‘crossings’ for a quarter.

The tolls continued until 1967, when the bridge was paid off.

You can see a picture of what the bridge's toll booths looked like HERE.

Are you old enough to remember paying a toll to cross the bridge?

This video provides an impressive view of downtown Augusta and the Kennebec River: