John A. Roebling and His East River Bridge Proposals 1847 — 1869

This paper traces the mid 19^th century John A. Roebling proposals for a bridge across the East River that preceded actual construction of the remarkable Brooklyn Bridge. The East River separated two of the fastest growing cities in the United States with the only means of crossing by ferries, originally rope and later steam powered. Many leading engineers of the time made serious proposals to create a bridge that would be crossable in all seasons and promote trade and transit between Manhattan and Brooklyn, but it remained for the Roebling's to actually build one. The 1864 bridge proposal by Julius Adams is described to put Roebling's proposal in perspective.