Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1879-07-01
really seemed as if Long Island would be
swept into the. Atlantic Ocean.-Harper's
The East River Bridge

The bridge now in process of construc-
tion connecting the cities of New York
and Brooklyn will have the longest sin
gle span of any bridge in the world.
! The main span will be 1896 feet six
inches, and the land spans $50 feet each.
The bridge was designed in 1867 by
John A. Roebling, but he died in 1863,
before any work on it had begun, and it
has been built entirely under the guild
ance of Washington A., RoebEng, the
present chief engineer.
The bridge extends from the junction
of Sands and Fulton street, in Brooklyn,
to Chatham street, in New York-a total
length of 1856 feet, the Brooklyn ap-
proach being OIL feet, the suspended
part 8 3,455d feet, and the New York ap-
proach l,5024 feet. - .4.-.-.
The approaches will consist of Sc
ries of brick and granite arches, which,
when finished, will be ornaments to the
two cities. 1t has taken nine years to
complete the towers and anchorages,
construct the cables, and get everything
ready for the suspension Of the floor.
Preparing the foundations for the tow
ers was one of the most difficult parts of
the work. Huge timber caissons, each
l79 feet long, I02 feet wide, and twenty
five feet high, containing over 100000
feet of timber, were sunk below the bed
ofthe river until they rested on rock or
on an equally firm statum. On the
Brooklyn side this was reached at a
depth of forty-fve feet below high water /;
but it was necessary to go seventy eight
feet below high water on the New Y York
side. The pneumatic method of sinking
caissons is not new, but the operations
here surpassed by their immensity
everything of this kind that had ever
been done before. The towers are 278
feet high. The anchorages are 1913 feet
by 119 feet at the base. lit feet by 1O4
feet at the top, and eighty mine feet high.
The total quantity of granite and lime
stone in the towers and anchorages is
las, 900 cubic yards, and it required the
continuous work for four years of over
twenty quarries in Maine, Massachusetts,,
Rhode Island and New York to furnish
the necessary supply. In the summer of
1876 the masonry was completed.
On the 29th May, 1877, the first wire
for the cable was stretched across the
river. There are four cables, each con-
sisting Of nineteen strands, each strand,
containing 280 galvanized cast steeliwires,
No. s guage. These cables are fifteen
and three-quarter inches in diameter
For wrapping the cables galvanized an
nealad iron wire was used March
l, 1879, the four cables were completed,
just twenty-one months after they were
commenced.
The platform of the bridge, which is
five feet wider than Broadway, is sus-
tanned by the iron cross beams, and stiff
ened by six longitudinal trusses. 1t is
divided into five parts, two outer ones
intended for horse-cars and general vehi-
Gle traffic, two intermediate divisions
intended to accommodate the rapid transit
passenger cars, and a central promenade,
little above the level of the main
floor, and intended for pedestrians. The
stiffening trusses will be iron, six in
number, the two outer ones nine and a
half feet high, the other four sixteen feet
in height, The total weight of the
bridge will be 1890 tons. 1t is proposed
to move the cars on this bridge by means
Of wire ropes and stationary engines.
This method is considered as preferable
to that of locomotives on account Of the
steep grade of the bridge. -. fsi-. f-
Its estimated that the bridge, when
completed, will have cost $13. 500, 900,
ofwhich $9,500,000 will be spent on the
bridge itself, and $4,000, 900 in acquiring
the necessary real estate. 1t is hoped
that in 1881 the bridge will be opened
to the public. .-Sc5ea1tifc A711eYicG7l. ~