The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-05-23

ers was stretched across the river to assist in
making the cables. That bridge was four
feet wide, and was laid on two small cables
200 feet high. Two fve-eighths-inch wire
ropes served as hand-rais to this pathway
in the sky" Many persons made the peril
Gus trip over it while it was in existence.
The making of the strands for the cables,
which were begun on June H. 1877, was not
completed until October 10, 1878. Each
of the four cables contains 6, 296 parallel (not
twisted) galvanized steel, oi-coated wires,
closely wrapped to a solid cylinder, and is
1914 inches in diameter. So many wires could
not be handled at once, so that each cable is
divided into nineteen strands When twelve
strands were finished in each cable, seven of
the central ones were clamped into the form
of small cable nine inches in diameter.
| This was made into the center core. On June
IA, 1873, the first serious accident in the OPP
erations of spanning the river occurred A
strand was let loose at the New York anchor
age. 1t swept over the top OF the tower an r
into the river killing two men and injuring
three more. Altogether, some twenty per-
! sons have been killed during the erection of
the bridge
When the cables were ready for their loads
suspended bands made of wrought iron were
| fastened on at intervals of seven and one
half feet. To these bands were attached sus-
pender ropes made of sheet wires. These
ropes are made to hold one hundred tons
each, but not more than ten tons weight will
| come uSon one of them. The SuSpender
ropes hold up the steel structure which
forms the roadways.
| On the approaches the width of the bridge
| is 100 feet. Here the wagonways are paved
with Belgian blocks, and the footway, which
is only three feet above the roadways, has an
asphalt pavement. But from anchorage to
anchorage the bridge is different 1t is
deft combination of steel beams, trusses,
girders and chords, eighty-fve feet wide,
t1oored with timber except in the space re-
served for the railway tracks. The total
weight of steel in the bridge is 6620 tons.
The great delay in the delivery of this steel
according to contract postponed the compile
ton OF the bridge for nearly one year.
AS now completed, there are five parallel
avenues on the bridge. The outer two, nine
teen feet wide each, are devoted to vehicles.
In the center is an elevated foot-path fifteen
and one-half feet wide. On either side OF
this are the railway tracks-one for cars
going to Brooklyn and one for those coming
to New York
CAPACITY OF THE BRIDGE FOR TRAVEL.
The promenade has capacity, if persons
move at the rate of 200 feet per minute, OF
allowing $4,000 persons to pass over every
hour. The roadway will admit the passage
of /, 440 vehicles per hour OF an average
weight VI tuTee anu Il nan IONS each, eSll-
mating three moving vehicles in every 100
feet The bridge will sustain 1O,0 600 soldiers
marching better than any ordinary bridge.
The cars are to be propelled by an endless
chain, but when they reach the center of the
main span they will run to the end by their
own gravity and momentum being under the
control of brakes. Passengers will get in at
one end and will be unable to get out until
they reach the other end of the bridge. 1t is
CalCul ated that eighty ears Such are uSpH
on the elevated roads, can be kept in opera
| ton at once. twenty of which will be on the
bridge at one time. Each car can accommo-
date 100 passengers, and $4,000 persons can be
| taken across in an hour.
The total length OF the bridge is 5,9S9 feet.
| The length of the river span is 1,595 feet
and at the center it will be 135 feet above
| high water in summer, and 1873 feet in win
| ter the difference being caused by the effect
| of the heat and cold on the steel The wind
| blowing at a velocity of of 100 miles an hour
| would not hurt the bridge. The greatest We
| locity of the wind here is 76 miles an hour
| The center of the suspended structure is Is
| feet higher than the roadways of the towers
| Not over per cent of the vessels that enter
| this port would have to strike their top
| masts in passing under the bridge From
anchorage to anchorage the bridge is 8, 46O
feet long, and the total weight of the sus-
pended structure is II. 7SO tons. The cables,
| Chief Engineer Roebling says, are strong
enough to pull up the anchorages, which
weigh 10000 tons each. The bridge is to be
| lighted by one hundred electric lights.