Brooklyn Bridge
When the bridge opened in 1883 it was the longest suspension bridge in the world and the first to hang from cables of steel. The two granite towers with pointed arches recall Gothic cathedrals. A walkway in the middle runs above the traffic with a view of Manhattan.
John A. Roebling, a German-born engineer who specialised in suspension bridges, designed the bridge between Manhattan and Brooklyn. He was injured in an accident in 1869 and died soon after. His son Washington Roebling took over, but he suffered decompression sickness after working in the pressurised chambers, caissons, used to dig the foundations beneath the river. He became bedridden and directed the work from a window, while his wife Emily Warren Roebling passed on his instructions and learned a great deal of engineering. The bridge opened on 24 May 1883.
The main span is about 486 metres long. The cables are spun from steel wire, a material then new for suspension bridges. In addition to the vertical suspenders the bridge has diagonal stays running from the towers out into the deck, which makes it very stiff. The towers are of granite and limestone with pointed openings and give the bridge a monumental, almost ecclesiastical expression. Above the roadways an elevated wooden walkway runs along the middle of the bridge.
Six days after the opening, panic broke out on the walkway when a rumour spread that the bridge was collapsing, and twelve people died. The following year the circus owner P.T. Barnum led 21 elephants across the bridge to show that it would hold. The bridge has become a symbol of New York and has been depicted by many artists and photographers. It shows how engineering and historical styles met in the 19th century.