Brooklyn Bridge: 1883 – Brooklyn, New York
- Spans the East River.
- First steel-wire suspension bridge.
- Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964.
- Initially, Brooklyn Bridge was known as ‘New York and Brooklyn Bridge’. It was given its present name by the city government, in 1915.
- With a main span of 1,595.5 feet (486.3 m), it was the longest suspension bridge in the world until 1903.
Tower Bridge: 1894 – London, England
- Spans the River Thames.
- Tower Bridge is sometimes mistakenly referred to as London Bridge which is the next bridge upstream.
- Tower Bridge remains open on a daily basis. 10:00 to 18:30 – 1st April to 30th September, and 09:30 to 18:00 – 1st October to 31st March.
- In 1974, the original operating mechanism was largely replaced by a new electro-hydraulic drive system.
- In May 1997, the ‘unexpected’ opening of Tower Bridge divided the motorcade of US President Bill Clinton.
Golden Gate Bridge: 1937 – San Francisco, California
- The Golden Gate Bridge has been closed three times for weather.
- The color of the bridge is officially called international orange.
- With a length of 1.7 mi it was the longest suspension bridge span in the world when it was completed.
- The steel used to build the bridge was made in New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania and shipped through the Panama Canal.
- The bridge has approximately 1,200,000 total rivets.
Charles Bridge: 15th Century – Prague, Czech Republic
- Spans the Vltava River and is the second oldest bridge in Czech Republic.
- Eggs were used to enrich the mortar to make it bind to the stone blocks better.
- The foundation stone was laid in 1357 on the 9th day of the 7th month at 5:31 AM. Charles IV chose this time so that the date and time were a sequence of odd numbers, 1-3-5-7-9-7-5-3-1.
- Capital repairs of the bridge took place between 1965 and 1978.
- During the end of the Thirty Years’ War in 1648, the Swedes occupied the west bank of the Vltava, and as they tried to advance into the Old Town a battle erupted with the heaviest fighting taking place right on the bridge.
“Wind and Rain” Bridge: about 100 years old – Chengyang, China
- Spans the Linxi River near the Dong village of Maan.
- The Bridge was built without a single nail.
- The bridge is a Unesco World Heritage site.
- These bridges provided local residents with places to meet, relax, socialize and exchange views.
- The “Wind and Rain” Bridge is protected as a valued cultural relic of Dong people of China.
CONTINUE READING for 5 Amazing Photos of all 5 Amazing Bridges.
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