The Great Bridge The Epic Story of the

This monumental book is the enthralling story of one of the greatest events in our nation's history, during the Age of Optimism -- a period when Americans were convinced in their hearts that all things were possible.In the years around 1870, when the project was first undertaken, the concept of building an unprecedented bridge to span the East River between the great cities of Manhattan and Brooklyn required a vision and determination comparable to that which went into the building of the great cathedrals. Throughout the fourteen years of its construction, the odds against the successful completion of the bridge seemed staggering. Bodies were crushed and broken, lives lost, political empires fell, and surges of public emotion constantly threatened the project. But this is not merely the saga of an engineering miracle; it is a sweeping narrative of the social climate of the time and of the heroes and rascals who had a hand in either constructing or exploiting the surpassing enterprise.

David McCullough (1933–2022) twice received the Pulitzer Prize, for Truman and John Adams, and twice received the National Book Award, for The Path Between the Seas and Mornings on Horseback. His other acclaimed books include The Johnstown Flood, The Great Bridge, Brave Companions, 1776, The Greater Journey, The American Spirit, The Wright Brothers, and The Pioneers. He was the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. Visit DavidMcCullough.com.

Contents

AUTHOR'S NOTE

PART ONE

1. The Plan
2. Man of Iron
3. The Genuine Language of America
4. Father and Son
5. Brooklyn
6. The Proper Person to See
7. The Chief Engineer

PART TWO

8. All According to Plan
9. Down in the Caisson

PICTURE SECTION

10. Fire
11. The Past Catches Up
12. How Natural, Right, and Proper
13. The Mysterious Disorder
14. The Heroic Mode

PART THREE

15. At the Halfway Mark
16. Spirits of '76
17. A Perfect Pandemonium
18. Number 8, Birmingham Gauge
19. The Gigantic Spinning Machine

PICTURE SECTION

20. Wire Fraud
21. Emily
22. The Man in the Window
23. And Yet the Bridge Is Beautiful
24. The People's Day

EPILOGUE
APPENDIX
NOTES
PICTURE CREDITS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX

What is included with this book?

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The Great Bridge The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials