|
|
Article: Brooklyn Bridge
- Article from:
- Dictionary of American History
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
BROOKLYN BRIDGE
BROOKLYN BRIDGE.
This steel-cable and stone-tower suspension bridge was the outstanding American engineering achievement of the late nineteenth century for three reasons: its towers were based on foundations built up from underwater caisson excavations, it made novel use of steel cables, and its main span was 1,595 feet in length. Built between 1869 and 1883 from a design by John Roebling and his son Washington, and costing $15 million, it served as the first bridge across the East River and connected Brooklyn and New York. An accident took John ...