What Does The Brooklyn Bridge Connect

Historical Designations And Plaques

The Brooklyn Bridge has been listed as a National Historic Landmark since January 29, 1964, and was subsequently added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. The bridge has also been a New York City designated landmark since August 24, 1967, and was designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1972. In addition, it was placed on UNESCO‘s list of tentative World Heritage Sites in 2017.

A bronze plaque is attached to the Manhattan anchorage, which was constructed on the site of the Samuel Osgood House at 1 Cherry Street in Manhattan. Named after Samuel Osgood, a Massachusetts politician and lawyer, it was built in 1770 and served as the first U.S. presidential mansion. The Osgood House was demolished in 1856.

Another plaque on the Manhattan side of the pedestrian promenade, installed by the city in 1975, indicates the bridge’s status as a city landmark.

The History And Photography Of The Brooklyn Bridge

The single greatest wonderment of the Brooklyn Bridge is not its size, beauty, function or even technology, but the fact that it was created by hand. When construction began, neither the light bulb nor the telephone had been invented. It is truly the Great Pyramid of bridges.

The fourteen-year construction took the lives of many men, killed the architect, and crippled his son. It was construction on a scale that had never been done before and without some of the modern conveniences that we now take for granted.

The Cables And Roadways

To create the 4 main suspension cables, wires were pulled, strand by strand by a traveller rope from one tower to the next. Each cable held 6,289 of these wires, 331 wires to a strand and 19 stands to a cable.

While the cables were being strung, a major problem was discovered. The J. Lloyd Haigh company that was responsible for providing wire for the cables, was found to have given faulty wires. It was virtually impossible at the time to redo the wires, and so the story was kept as quiet as possible and 150 extra wires were added to each cable to strengthen them. The owner of the company, J. Lloyd Haigh was eventually put in jail.

The near-final straw occurred at the 10-year mark when the cables were completed and the roadways were beginning to be put down. Because of extreme delays from the companies providing the materials to create the roadways, the public began to become severely impatient. This, coupled with the fact that Washington Roebling hadnt actually set foot on the bridge in nearly 10 years due to his disability, made him a convenient scapegoat.

Despite the fact that the bridge engineers testified to the importance of Washington Roebling to the completion of the bridge, enough of the bridge trustees got together to vote on his removal. After a very tight vote, they were narrowly defeated.

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Late 19th Through Early 20th Centuries

Patronage across the Brooklyn Bridge increased in the years after it opened a million people paid to cross in the six first months. The bridge carried 8.5 million people in 1884, its first full year of operation this number doubled to 17 million in 1885 and again to 34 million in 1889. Many of these people were cable car passengers. Additionally, about 4.5 million pedestrians a year were crossing the bridge for free by 1892.

The first proposal to make changes to the bridge was sent in only two and a half years after it opened, when Linda Gilbert suggested glass steam-powered elevators and an observatory be added to the bridge and a fee charged for use, which would in part fund the bridge’s upkeep and in part fund her prison reform charity. This proposal was considered but not acted upon. Numerous other proposals were made during the first fifty years of the bridge’s life.

Trolley tracks were added in the center lanes of both roadways in 1898, allowing trolleys to use the bridge as well. That year, the formerly separate City of Brooklyn was unified with New York City, and the Brooklyn Bridge fell under city control.

Things You May Not Know About The Brooklyn Bridge

1. Boss Tweed helped get the project started.William M. Boss Tweed, the infamously corrupt head of New York Citys Tammany Hall political machine, latched on to the Brooklyn Bridge project from the very beginning. According to sworn testimony he gave later, he facilitated up to $65,000 in bribes to New Yorks aldermen in order to win their backing for a $1.5 million bond issue. He then became a major holder of bridge stock and joined a committee charged with managing the projects finances. Tweed allegedly hoped to skim money from the citys bridge contracts, much as he had done with other large public works. But he was arrested in 1871 before he could fully realize his plan. It has since been estimated that Tweed and his cronies stole at least $45 million, and perhaps as much as $200 million, from the public coffers during their time in power.

READ MORE: Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge Took 14 YearsAnd Multiple Lives

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Walk Across The Brooklyn Bridge At Dusk

A walk across the Brooklyn Bridge is something I like to do on every single visit to the Big Apple. If Im staying in Manhattan then I like to walk across to DUMBO . If Im staying in Brooklyn then I like to walk over to Manhattan. I thoroughly enjoy the walk across this iconic landmark every time Im in NYC, but to walk across at dusk and see the sunset over New York City is amazing every time! When you are on the bridge youll see the locals running and walking. Youll hear 20 different languages from the groups of tourists coming to see the bridge. Youll see Japanese and Korean tourists with their giant SLR cameras ! Youll see couples taking self portraits of themselves. Be sure to watch out for bicyclists and stay in the walking lane. And youll have a great view of Brooklyn to one side and an amazing view of Manhattan on the other side. On the contrary I would not recommend walking across the Manhattan Street Bridge due to the noisy train and a lack of good lighting, but if you want to get off the beaten track then this is also an option for great views of the city and to see the Brooklyn bridge from afar. I would recommend having dinner and drinks in DUMBO. There are some amazing cafes, coffee shops, chocolate boutiques, and restaurants in this hip Brooklyn neighborhood. Superfine is my personal favorite restaurant in DUMBO with a rotating menu based on what can be purchased locally and in season.

The Sun Sets On Brooklyn

If you believe that, Ive got a bridge to sell you. The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River. It is the first steel-wire suspension bridge. Do yourself a favor and walk across in either direction but just be mindful of the cyclists.

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The Man With The Plan

John Roebling, the Brooklyn Bridges creator, was a great pioneer in the design of steel suspension bridges. Born in Germany in 1806, he studied industrial engineering in Berlin and at the age of 25 immigrated to western Pennsylvania, where he attempted, unsuccessfully, to make his living as a farmer. He later moved to the state capital in Harrisburg, where he found work as a civil engineer. He promoted the use of wire cable and established a successful wire-cable factory.

Did you know? On May 17, 1884, P. T. Barnum led 21 elephants over the Brooklyn Bridge to prove that it was stable.

Meanwhile, he earned a reputation as a designer of suspension bridges, which at the time were widely used but known to fail under strong winds or heavy loads. Roebling addressed these problems by combining structural elements from previous bridge designsincluding cable arrays and stiffening trusses. Using this model, Roebling successfully bridged the Niagara Gorge at Niagara Falls, New York, and the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 1867, on the basis of these achievements, New York legislators approved Roeblings plan for a suspension bridge over the East River between Manhattan and Brooklyn. It would be the very first steel suspension bridge, boasting the longest span in the world: 1,600 feet from tower to tower.

The Brooklyn Bridge: The Eighth Wonder Of The World

Scott Fitzgerald called Manhattan Island the fresh, green breast of the New World that greeted the sailors on Hudsons Half Moon. The colonists wasted no time in proceeding with an aggressive program of land-clearing and filling.

The Brooklyn Bridge IS New York City. More than the Statue of Liberty, which we have to share with those guys over in New Jersey more than the Empire State Building, which we have to share with the rest of America more than the United Nations, which we have to share with the rest of world C the Brooklyn Bridge IS New York City.

Actually, there is a New Jersey connection to the bridge. John Augustus Roebling considered Trenton, the capital of New Jersey to be his hometown, and spent a great deal of time there during

The Brooklyn Bridge is a marvel of financing, engineering and beauty. When it opened in 1883, it was considered the eighth wonder of the world C and as far as I am concerned it still is. In 1883, it was the longest bridge ever to span a river C more than a mile long. It was the first bridge to be illuminated by electricity at night from its own power plant on the Brooklyn side. It was the first to use galvanized steel in its main cables. The construction of the Brooklyn Bridge was considered to be on the magnitude of the building of the Suez Canal and the Trans-Continental Railroad. In fact, both were finished in shorter periods of time than the Brooklyn Bridge.

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Can You Hear Me Now Under The Brooklyn Bridge

During a weekend getaway to New York City with some friends, I found myself still needing to check in with my office back home. This Friday afternoon, after weaving our way up Manhattan from Battery Park, I paused to pull out my cell phone and join the company conference call. Needless to say, I was more interested in my surroundings than the call. I put my phone on speaker, then mute and placed it on the rim of a nearby planter to free up my hands long enough to take this photo. I dont remember much from the call, but Ill remember standing under the Brooklyn Bridge for a lot longer. Lesson learned: Dont be in too much of a hurry to see a sight or do something that you miss whats right in front of you. I can guarantee that if my phone had remained pressed to my ear this photo wouldnt have been born.

Preventive Maintenance Program Implemented

Tapping into the newly available Federal funding, New York City developed a partnership with FHWA and NYSDOT, and in 1997 implemented a preventive maintenance program for the East River bridges. “FHWA has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to repair and reconstruct the East River bridges,” says FHWA’s Hart. “These facilities need to be maintained to keep the structures functioning the way they were rehabilitated to .”

The State also is helping to ensure that the Federal investment is protected. “We act on behalf of FHWA to make sure that maintenance projects that are federally funded follow the standards and procedures that are approved by FHWA,” says the NYSDOT Federal liaison Estevez. “This is just another way to confirm that things are done right.”

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Brooklyn Bridge Walking Route

A nice route to follow if you want to visit the Brooklyn Bridge is the DUMBO Brooklyn Bridge route, that can be found in my Erics New York App. Open the app and select walking routes to find the route that I created. During the route you can discover Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO and Brooklyn Bridge Park, among others, before crossing the Brooklyn Bridge.

History Of The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge was designed by John August Roebling who died as a result of an accident during the construction of the bridge before it was completed. After his death, his son, Washington Roebling, took over. He too had an accident, which made it impossible for him to coordinate the construction of the bridge. He continued to follow the construction of the bridge from his apartment with a telescope and was assisted by his wife Emily Warren Roebling. She helped with the communication between Washington Roebling and the construction workers. During construction, tragically 27 other people died. On May 24th, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was officially opened. Emily Warren Roebling was the first to cross the bridge, and 1,800 vehicles and 150,300 pedestrians followed her that day. At that time, the Brooklyn Bridge was the only connection between Manhattan and Brooklyn.

When the Brooklyn Bridge was built it cost $ 19 million. In 2007 this amount was equivalent to $320 million. Fun fact: Six days after the opening rumours arose about the stability of the bridge, it was said that it would collapse. To prove the rumours wrong, circus man P.T. Barnum paraded 21 elephants over the bridge the following year.

Nowadays an average of 120,000 cars, 4,000 pedestrians and 2,600 cyclists cross the Brooklyn Bridge every day.

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Green Lady In Yellow Sky

Lady Liberty has watched over New York Harbor for over 100 years. Standing 151 feet high, she was a gift from France depicting Libertas, the Roman goddess of freedom. This photo was taken from the Brooklyn Bridge. Crossing the Brooklyn Bridge by foot from Manhattan to Brooklyn and then walking to the promenade in Brooklyn Heights is one of my favorite things to do in New York City

Opening And Early History

A group of 100 “leading citizens of Brooklyn” walked over the bridge on December 5, 1909, marking the unofficial completion of the bridge. The bridge was officially opened by outgoing Mayor George B. McClellan Jr. on December 31, 1909. Shortly after opening, a fire on the Brooklyn side of the Manhattan Bridge damaged the structure.

In 1910, the year after the bridge opened, Carrère and Hastings drew up preliminary plans for an elaborate Greek Revival grand entry to the bridge on the Manhattan side as part of the “City Beautiful” movement , as well as a smaller approach on the Brooklyn side. These approaches would hide the bridge. The final plans were approved in 1912, and construction began the same year. A plot of 400 by 750 feet , bounded by the Bowery and Canal, Forsyth, and Bayard Streets was cleared for the arch and colonnade’s construction. The arch and colonnade were completed in 1915, while a pair of pylons on the Brooklyn side were installed in November 1916.

An upper-deck roadway on the bridge was installed in 1922. The bridge was the subject of American artist Edward Hopper‘s 1928 painting Manhattan Bridge Loop.

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More Maintenance Enhancements Ahead

NYCDOT plans to implement several additional initiatives in the near future to enhance its preventive maintenance program, including purchasing new equipment to support the use of liquid potassium acetate as an anti-icing agent, putting into action a computerized preventive maintenance management system , and implementing a new comprehensive maintenance program on NYCDOT’s 25 movable bridges. The city expects to have a contract for the movable bridges in place by mid-2005.

The city currently uses retrofitted dump trucks to apply the potassium acetate for anti-icing, but NYCDOT’s Division of Bridges expects the purchase of 18 new trucks to improve the anti-icing operations significantly. The new fleet will include 10 spray trucks, 5 units capable of spraying anti-icing liquids and spreading solids such as granulated de-icing materials, and 3 pickup trucks capable of both spraying and spreading.

In coordination with FHWA and NYSDOT, the city also will develop and implement a comprehensive computerized PMMS. “The city’s new computerized preventive maintenance program will manage all the information and data, and it will give us a good idea as to how well things are working,” Estevez says. The system will manage information for the East River bridges but will be expandable to include other bridges in the future. The computerized PMMS will include the following:

For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/motorist/eastriverbgs.html.

A History About The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed and suspension bridge . It spans the East River connecting the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan.

• Date: Opened On May 24, 1883
• Length: Main Span 1,595.5 Feet or 486.3 Meters

At the time of its construction, the Brooklyn Bridge broke multiple engineering records. It was the first bridge crossing the East River and it was the longest suspension bridge in the world at the time.

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To keep it safe and able to bear the voluminous traffic continuously crossing the bridge, it has been renovated several times to counter the gradual deterioration that comes with use and age. It even took six years to give the bridge a new coat of paint.

• Toll: Unlike Many Other Bridges In The Area, It is Toll-Free
• Traffic Type: Only Passenger Vehicles and Pedestrian/Bicycle Traffic Are Permitted
• Status: It Is Listed As a National Historic Landmark And A National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark

The bridge has two suspension towers that are 278 feet fall with a footprint of 140 feet at the high water line. They are called the Manhattan tower and the Brooklyn tower.

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