St. Petersburg in Pinellas County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Sunshine Skyway Bridge Collapse

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

1. Sunshine Skyway Bridge Collapse Marker

Inscription. In Memoriam
On May 9, 1980, the freighter Summit Venture struck the southbound Sunshine Skyway Bridge during a sudden and violent storm. Six cars and a passenger bus fell 150 feet into the bay. Thirty-five persons were lost.

Duane P. Adderley • Alphonso Blidge • Myrtle Brown • Willis L. Brown • John H. Callaway, Jr. • Doris I. Carlson • John J. Carlson • Leslie J. Coleman Jr. • Charles L. Collins • Michael J. Curtin • Lavern L. Daniels • Sandra L. Davis • Harry Dietch • Hildreth Dietch • Sharon Dixon • Brenda J. Green • Robert D. Harding • Gerda Hedquist • A. Reginald Hudson • Louise T. Johnson • Yvonnne Johnson • Horace V. Lemons • Lillian T. Loucks • Louis Lucas, Jr. • Marguerite L. Mathison • Tawanna K. McClendon • Manesha Y. McGarrah • Wanda S. McGarrah • Ann Pondy • James A. Pryor • Melborn L. Russell • Delores E. Smith • Robert S. Smith • Woodrow Triplett
Dedicated May 9, 2015

Erected 2015.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Bridges & Viaducts • Disasters • Roads & Vehicles • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical date for this entry is May 9, 1980.

Location. 27° 38.882′ N, 82° 40.533′ W.

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Marker is in St. Petersburg, Florida, in Pinellas County. It can be reached from the intersection of Interstate 275 and 54th Street South, on the right when traveling south. Located at the Skyway Bridge Rest Area. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Saint Petersburg FL 33715, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Florida’s Gulf Coast

and on Tampa Bay.

It is also in the American South

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Florida Honors and Remembers our POW’s and MIA’s (within shouting distance of this marker); USCGC Blackthorn WLB-391 Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); USCGC Blackthorn Bow Anchor (about 300 feet away, measured in a

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

2. Sunshine Skyway Bridge Collapse Marker

direct line); Tierra Verde Mound (approx. 3.4 miles away); The History of Princess Hirrihigua (approx. 4 miles away); Pinellas Point Tocobaga Temple Mound (approx. 4 miles away); Spanish American War Memorial (approx. 4.3 miles away); Fort De Soto Batteries and Military Post (approx. 4.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in St. Petersburg.

Also see . . . Florida bridge collapse of 1980: Freighter crashes into Sunshine Skyway Bridge, killing 35. (Submitted on March 27, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

Sunshine Skyway Bridge Collapse image. Click for full size.

Public Domain

3. Sunshine Skyway Bridge Collapse

Sunshine Skyway Bridge Dedication Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

4. Sunshine Skyway Bridge Dedication Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on March 27, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 26, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 536 times since then and 117 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on March 26, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 27, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.