Souvenir of the Opening of the East River Bridge, May 24, 1883
date: label: Date made
content: 1883
label: associated date
content: 1883-05-24
notes: label: Description
content: By the late 19th century, the United States had established itself as a world leader in the area of civil engineering. Perhaps no project better symbolized America's technical prowess than the awe-inspiring Brooklyn Bridge, which connected the nation's largest and third largest cities—New York and Brooklyn, respectively—in 1883 across the turbulent tidal strait known as the East River. The main 1,600-foot (490-meter) span of this towering suspension bridge exceeded the world's longest span by fifty percent.
label: Description
content: The bridge's opening prompted a huge celebration. This white metal medallion was struck to commemorate that occasion. Its obverse proudly proclaims the motto, "Two Cities As One," while the legend on its reverse reads: "Souvenir of the Opening of the East River Bridge, May 24th 1883."
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
topic: label: related event
content: Opening of the Brooklyn Bridge
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Mechanical and Civil Engineering
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content: Engineering, Building, and Architecture
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content: Coins, Currency and Medals
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content: Transportation
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1981.0079.01
label: accession number
content: 1981.0079
label: catalog number
content: 1981.0079.01
objectType: label: Object Name
content: medallion
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal, white (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 1/8 in x 1 3/8 in; x .3175 cm x 3.4925 cm