The Brooklyn Bridge

I stumbled on this amazing picture of the Brooklyn Bridge today.  These are painters, working on the cables of the suspension bridge.  I don't know who took it back in 1914, but kudos them!  It made me think of the fascinating history of the bridge and those who built it.

Construction started in 1870 and was completed in 1883.  It crosses the East river, linking Manhattan and Brooklyn.

The bridges designer sustained an injury in the beginning building process and subsequently passed away.  He passed the job of building the bridge to his young son.  The son also sustained injury and was unable to supervise the construction.  His wife, Emily Warren Roebling, stepped in learning mathematics and acquiring unique knowledge of bridge construction.  The legend is that she cared for her husband during the day and, at night, went to oversee the construction of the bridge.

It was opened 130 years ago and almost 150,000 vehicles still cross the bridge each day.

Here's a picture I took of the bridge when I lived in NY.  What looks like scaffolding below the bridge was a temporarily art project of waterfalls constructed below the bridge.

I've often heard that the limestone used in the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge is the famous Indiana Limestone.  However, I think this is a common misconception.  Perhaps a mix up with the Empire State Building and Flatiron Building which DO feature Indiana Limestone.

A funny side note, the Sherman Minton bridge that crosses the Ohio River between Kentucky in Indiana was completed in 1962 and had to be closed in 2011 for extensive repairs.  The Sherman Minton bridge carried about half the number of vehicles per day.  I think that they could have used Emily Warren Roebling.