The George Washington Bridge

The George Washington Bridge
Author: Michael Aaron Rockland
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Total Pages: 165
Release: 2020-01-17
Genre: History
ISBN: 0813594626

Since opening in 1931, the George Washington Bridge, linking New York and New Jersey, has become the busiest bridge in the world, with 103 million vehicles crossing it in 2016. Many people also consider it the most beautiful bridge in the world, yet remarkably little has been written about this majestic structure. Intimate and engaging, this revised and expanded edition of Michael Rockland's rich narrative presents perspectives on the GWB, as it is often called, that span history, architecture, engineering, transportation, design, the arts, politics, and even post-9/11 mentalities. This new edition brings new insight since its initial publication in 2008, including a new chapter on the infamous “Bridgegate” Chris Christie-era scandal of 2013, when members of the governor's administration shut down access to the bridge, causing a major traffic jam and scandal and subsequently helping undermine Christie’s candidacy for the US presidency. Stunning photos, from when the bridge was built in the late 1920s through the present, are a powerful complement to the bridge's history. Rockland covers the competition between the GWB and the Brooklyn Bridge that parallels the rivalry between New Jersey and New York City. Readers will learn about the Swiss immigrant Othmar Ammann, an unsung hero who designed and built the GWB, and how a lack of funding during the Depression dictated the iconic, uncovered steel beams of its towers, which we admire today. There are chapters discussing accidents on the bridge, such as an airplane crash landing in the westbound lanes and the sad story of suicides off its span; the appearance of the bridge in media and the arts; and Rockland's personal adventures on the bridge, including scaling its massive towers on a cable. Movies, television shows, songs, novels, countless images, and even PlayStation 2 games have aided the GWB in becoming a part of the global popular culture. This tribute will captivate residents living in the shadow of the GWB, the millions who walk, jog, bike, skate, or drive across it, as well as tourists and those who will visit it someday. .

Chief Engineer

Chief Engineer
Author: Erica Wagner
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2017-06-27
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1620400537

“A welcome tribute to the persistence, precision and humanity of Washington Roebling and a love-song for the mighty New York bridge he built.” - The Wall Street Journal Chief Engineer is the first full biography of a crucial figure in the American story--Washington Roebling, builder of the Brooklyn Bridge. One of America's most iconic and recognizable structures, the Brooklyn Bridge is as much a part of New York as the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State Building. Yet its distinguished builder is too often forgotten--and his life is of interest far beyond his chosen field. It is the story of immigrants, the frontier, the Civil War, the making of the modern world, and a man whose life modeled courage in the face of extreme adversity. Chief Engineer is enriched by Roebling's own eloquent voice, unveiled in his recently discovered memoir, previously thought lost to history. The memoir reveals that his father, John-a renowned engineer who came to America after humble beginnings in Germany-was a tyrannical presence in Roebling's life. It also documents Roebling's time as a young man in the Union Army, where he built bridges to carry soldiers across rivers and fought in pivotal battles from Antietam to Gettysburg. He then married the remarkable Emily Warren Roebling, who played a crucial role in the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, Roebling's grandest achievement-but by no means the only one. Elegantly written with a compelling narrative sweep, Chief Engineer introduces Washington Roebling and his era to a new generation of readers.

We Are Bridges

We Are Bridges
Author: Cassandra Lane
Publisher: Feminist Press at CUNY
Total Pages: 182
Release: 2021-04-20
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1952177936

"In this evocative memoir, Cassandra Lane deftly uses the act of imagination to reclaim her ancestors’ story as a backdrop for telling her own. The tradition of Black women’s storytelling leaps forward within these pages—into fresh, daring, and excitingly new territory." —Bridgett M. Davis, author of The World According to Fannie Davis When Cassandra Lane finds herself pregnant at thirty-five, the knowledge sends her on a poignant exploration of memory to prepare for her entry into motherhood. She moves between the twentieth-century rural South and present-day Los Angeles, reimagining the intimate life of her great-grandparents Mary Magdelene Magee and Burt Bridges, and Burt's lynching at the hands of vengeful white men in his southern town. We Are Bridges turns to creative nonfiction to reclaim a family history from violent erasure so that a mother can gift her child with an ancestral blueprint for their future. Haunting and poetic, this debut traces the strange fruit borne from the roots of personal loss in one Black family—and considers how to take back one’s American story.

The Bridges of New York

The Bridges of New York
Author: Sharon Reier
Publisher: Courier Corporation
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2012-06-14
Genre: History
ISBN: 0486137058

Stirring text-and-picture tribute to over 75 New York City bridges — among them the Brooklyn Bridge, Throgs Neck, Verrazano Narrows, Whitestone, George Washington, and other splendid structures.

Building the Brooklyn Bridge, 1869-1883: An Illustrated History, with Images in 3D

Building the Brooklyn Bridge, 1869-1883: An Illustrated History, with Images in 3D
Author: Jeffrey I. Richman
Publisher: Bauer and Dean Publishers
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2021-09-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781735600123

Building the Brooklyn Bridge reminds us of the historic importance of this iconic bridge that was once considered the eighth wonder of the world. It opened up development across the East River and made travel between the two independent cities of Brooklyn and New York quicker and more reliable; especially once the bridge railway was fully operational in September 1883, four months after the bridge's opening. Historian Jeffrey Richman describes in engaging detail how the Brooklyn Bridge was built over fourteen years and clearly explains the function of each of its parts, from the anchorages to the massive cables. The story of the construction is also told through 255 remarkable images, many never before published, including 44 images in 3D, specially created for this book. These historic photographs, woodcuts, color lithographs, and engineering drawings take us back in time to when all of America, and much of the world, watched with excitement as a singular bridge of unprecedented size and technology was built over one of the busiest waterways in the world. The book illuminates long-forgotten details and presents the bridge as the engineering marvel that it is-one that still elicits awe and admiration. This is an incredible journey back in time to when all of America-and much of the world-excitedly watched as the Brooklyn Bridge was being built. Reading the book will be a real treat to anyone who has ever stepped onto this beloved icon and been moved by its majesty. A pair of 3D glasses is included with every copy of the book.

Engineering America

Engineering America
Author: Richard Haw
Publisher:
Total Pages: 649
Release: 2020
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0190663901

Engineering America narrates how Johann August Röbling, the third child of a provincial German tobacconist, became John A. Roebling, world-renowned American engineer, wealthy manufacturer, and designer of the Brooklyn Bridge and other great engineering feats of nineteenth-century America.

Building Washington

Building Washington
Author: Robert J. Kapsch
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2018-05-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1421424886

A richly illustrated behind-the-scenes tour of how the nation’s capital was built. In 1790, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson set out to build a new capital for the United States of America in just ten years. The area they selected on the banks of the Potomac River, a spot halfway between the northern and southern states, had few resources or inhabitants. Almost everything needed to build the federal city would have to be brought in, including materials, skilled workers, architects, and engineers. It was a daunting task, and these American Founding Fathers intended to do it without congressional appropriation. Robert J. Kapsch’s beautifully illustrated book chronicles the early planning and construction of our nation’s capital. It shows how Washington, DC, was meant to be not only a government center but a great commercial hub for the receipt and transshipment of goods arriving through the Potomac Canal, then under construction. Picturesque plans would not be enough; the endeavor would require extensive engineering and the work of skilled builders. By studying an extensive library of original documents—from cost estimates to worker time logs to layout plans—Kapsch has assembled a detailed account of the hurdles that complicated this massive project. While there have been many books on the architecture and planning of this iconic city, Building Washington explains the engineering and construction behind it.