The image depicts the inauguration of the Pierre-Laporte Bridge on November 6, 1970. Premier Robert Bourassa attended, as did Pierre Laporte’s widow, Françoise Brouillet Laporte, and children. On October 21, 1970, the Cabinet decided to name the bridge Pierre-Laporte, rather than Frontenac Bridge, in tribute to the politician who had died four days earlier at the hands of the Front de Libération du Québec.

1968 - 2015

The Pierre-Laporte Bridge, a feat of Quebec engineering

As automobiles became widespread in the 1950s and 1960s, the Quebec Bridge reached capacity. In June 1966, construction began on a second road link between Québec City and Lévis, 200 metres from the Quebec Bridge. It would connect several highways. Originally intended to be called the Frontenac Bridge, it was renamed before its inauguration in November 1970 as a tribute to Pierre Laporte, a minister in the Bourassa Administration who died during the October Crisis. It is considered the longest main span on a suspension bridge in Canada. Today, 120,000 vehicles cross it every day.

A mournful ceremony

Auteur inconnu The image depicts the inauguration of the Pierre-Laporte Bridge on November 6, 1970. Premier Robert Bourassa attended, as did Pierre Laporte’s widow, Françoise Brouillet Laporte, and children. On October 21, 1970, the Cabinet decided to name the bridge Pierre-Laporte, rather than Frontenac Bridge, in tribute to the politician who had died four days earlier at the hands of the Front de Libération du Québec.

Chronoscope What comments or thoughts does this photo evoke for you? (unilingual French for a limited time)

Depicted period: 1970

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