Things You May Not Know About the Brooklyn Bridge. The Brooklyn Bridge opened to the public on May 2. This large wall art has a dominating sky at twilight giving a panoramic view of lower Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridge before 2001 from the East River. The World Trade Center stands in the background. Brooklyn Bridge Facts: The Brooklyn Bridge is a suspension bridge (built 1869-83) across the East River from Brooklyn to Manhattan. This was the first bridge to use steel cables. The length of the main span. Manhattan with Brooklyn for the first time. Dubbed the “Eighth Wonder of the World,” early visitors gawked at its immense granite towers and thick steel cables, not to mention its birds- eye views. The bridge, which took 1. New York City’s top tourist attractions and a busy thoroughfare for commuters. Check out 1. 0 things you may not know about the frequently photographed landmark. Boss Tweed helped get the project started. William M. According to sworn testimony he gave later, he facilitated up to $6. New York’s aldermen in order to win their backing for a $1. He then became a major holder of bridge stock and joined a committee charged with managing the project’s finances. Tweed allegedly hoped to skim money from the city’s bridge contracts, much as he had done with other large public works. But he was arrested in 1. It has since been estimated that Tweed and his cronies stole at least $4. At least 2. 0 people died during the bridge’s construction. Le pont de Brooklyn, en anglais Brooklyn Bridge, . Il traverse l'East River pour relier les arrondissements de Manhattan et de Brooklyn. Building Big Databank entry on Brooklyn Bridge. Vital Statistics: Location: Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York, USA Completion Date: 1883 Cost: $18 million Length: 3,460 feet. The first fatality came in 1. Roebling, who designed the bridge, was taking compass readings one afternoon when his foot was crushed between some pilings and a boat. His toes were amputated, and a few weeks later he died of tetanus. Other workers fell off the 2. Dozens more suffered debilitating injuries, including Roebling’s son Washington, who became bedridden with the bends after taking over as chief engineer from his father. It was the longest suspension bridge in the world—by far. A few high- profile collapses in the first half of the 1. Undeterred, Roebling figured out how to stabilize them, largely by adding a web truss to either side of the roadway platform. He built four suspension bridges in the 1. Ohio River and another near Niagara Falls. All would later be dwarfed by the Brooklyn Bridge, which, with a main span of more just over 1,5. Renee Leone celebrates this iconic Brooklyn Bridge with her signature mosaic-inspired art. It remained that way until 1. Williamsburg Bridge overtook it by 4. The bridge opened with a massive celebration. Huge crowds gathered on May 2. The New York Times described, in reference to Brooklyn, as “the greatest gala day in the history of that moral suburb.” President Chester A. Arthur, New York Governor (and future president) Grover Cleveland and various local politicians marched onto the bridge, accompanied by a military band and an attachment of troops. Celebratory cannon fire rang out when they reached the Manhattan- side tower. The festivities also included an hour- long fireworks display, receptions and a number of speeches. Just before midnight the bridge opened to the public, and more than 1. Not everyone was happy, however. Many Irish boycotted the ceremony because it coincided with the birthday of British monarch Queen Victoria. A tragedy occurred almost immediately. A week after the opening, on Memorial Day, an estimated 2. Twelve people were crushed to death on a narrow stairway, and others emerged bloodied and in some cases without clothes. One eyewitness described men and women “with their limbs contorted and their faces purpling in their agonized efforts to breathe.” No changes came about in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, except that more police were stationed on the pedestrian promenade. The bridge toll was higher then than it is now. When the Brooklyn Bridge first opened, it cost a penny to cross by foot, 5 cents for a horse and rider and 1. Farm animals were allowed at a price of 5 cents per cow and 2 cents per sheep or hog. Under pressure from civic groups and commuters, the pedestrian toll was repealed in 1. The roadway tolls were then rescinded in 1. New York Mayor William J. Gaynor, who declared, “I see no more reason for toll gates on the bridges than for toll gates on Fifth Avenue or Broadway.” The Brooklyn Bridge and three other bridges that likewise cross the East River have stayed free ever since for both walkers and drivers, even as New York’s other major bridges and tunnels have gotten steadily more expensive. At the time, the bridge connected two different cities. Brooklyn did not become part of New York City until 1. Prior to the merger, it was the fourth most populous city in the country—behind only New York, Chicago and Philadelphia—with loads of manufacturing jobs, many churches, relatively low crime and good schools. The bridge quickly became a cultural sensation. The Brooklyn Bridge has arguably inspired more art than any other manmade structure in the United States. Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol and dozens of other well- known painters have incorporated it into their works, as have photographers (Walker Evans); documentarians (Ken Burns); playwrights (Arthur Miller); novelists (Henry Miller); newspaper columnists (Jimmy Breslin); urban historians (Lewis Mumford); poets (Jack Kerouac); and musicians (Wyclef Jean). It likewise has had a slew of TV shows and movie cameos, including “The Docks of New York,” “It Happened in Brooklyn,” “Moonstruck,” “Godzilla” and “Spider- Man.” Meanwhile, advertisers have used the bridge to sell everything from Vaseline to Absolut Vodka, and it is even the symbol of an Italian chewing gum. The bridge has always attracted daredevils and showmen. Circus entertainer P. T. Barnum took 2. May 1. 88. 4 to show that it was safe. The following year, Robert E. Odlum, a swimming instructor from Washington, D. C., became the first to leap into the East River below. He died, but a number of later jumpers survived, including one man allegedly trying to impress his girlfriend and another who wore large canvas wings. Other stuntmen have flown planes under the bridge and bungee jumped from or climbed its towers. Peregrine falcons nest atop it. Peregrine falcons are the fastest animals on record, capable of reaching speeds over 2. They disappeared from the eastern United States due to DDT poisoning, but made a comeback after the pesticide was banned in 1. Surprisingly, the birds soon began thriving in New York City, where they nest on bridges, church steeples and skyscrapers. Today, about 1. 6 pairs of peregrines live in the Big Apple, and the Brooklyn Bridge has become one of their regular nesting sites.
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