Bridges are not only a vital part of infrastructure and the transportation system, allowing us to easily travel across water without the hassle and delay of ferries, but also function as important landmarks and magnificent pieces of art. This holds especially true when it comes to both the Brooklyn Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge.  These tremendous structures were both engineering marvels when first constructed and represent the resilience and ingenuity of mankind. Both bridges feature twisted cable suspension engineering and were the longest suspension bridges in the world when first constructed.

The Brooklyn Bridge, built roughly 50 years prior to the Golden Gate, has towers built from a combination of limestone. granite, and Rosendale cement. It also features long suspension cables made from steel wire and a neo-Gothic architectural style. The bridge is one of the oldest of its kind and is considered a historic icon of New York City. Connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn, the bridge is generally photographed with the New York skyline in the background, a reminder of the bridge’s importance to the transportion of the bustling city. It is said that Warren Roebling designed the bridge to be six times stronger than it needed to be. This, along with the city’s love for the historic landmark and willingness to renovate it, are the reasons why the Brooklyn Bridge is still standing today.

The Golden Gate bridge, completed in 1937, was the longest suspension bridge in the world until 1964 and has become an icon for the city of San Francisco. The bridge, famous for its “International Orange” color, is largely comprised of steel, contrary to the Brooklyn Bridge, and is held together by some 1.2 million steel rivets. It also features a more contemporary design than the ne0-Gothic style of the Brooklyn Bridge. Photographs of the bridge tend to be shot from one end or the other and focus on beauty of the surrounding foothills and the water in the Golden Gate strait. Some of the most aesthetically pleasing photos capture the bridge while surrounded by a sea of fog, giving it the appearance of floating on a bed of clouds. Ingrained into the culture and history of San Francisco, the bridge has undergone numerous renovations, including a $392 million program to retrofit the bridge for the seismic activity common in the area.

The Golden Gate bridge is a suspension bridge, and is the twelfth longest in the world. The bridge’s cables system is fairly simple; they run straight up and down. Although eye-pleasing, the “wow factor” of the bridge’s design lies more in its sheer size and length, and bright orange color, than in intricate or lavish details. Photography of the bridge tends to focus on its length and lighting system rather than up close details. It is an icon in the city of San Francisco, and has been declared one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers, which is why this bridge continues to be upgraded and improved rather than replaced.

 

The Brooklyn Bridge, by contrast, is a cable-stayed/suspension bridge hybrid. It was the first steel-wired bridge of its kind, and has an intricate crossing wire design. The bridge also has two large towers from which the cables run to support the bridge deck. The bridge contains limestone, granite, and Rosendale cement and is neo-Gothic style, giving it a much more historic look than the Golden Gate bridge, with many more fine details. Photographs of this bridge showcase its wire system and detail on the pillars, rather than its overall size and appearance. This bridge, too, is iconic in New York City, and continues to be renovated rather than rebuilt in order to preserve this historic landmark (it was actually designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964).

 

I think that the Brooklyn Bridge gives us a peek into past architecture while still practicing new, innovative techniques, while the Golden Gate Bridge was a step toward a new, more modern look and era in architecture and engineering.

The Brooklyn Bridge of New York and the Golden Gate Bridge of California are both huge architectural and engineering accomplishments of the United States. Both of the bridges are beautiful, complex and incredibly useful and impressive. Since the two bridges were built at different points in time, in different places, and by different people, the structural design of the two bridges are each unique in their own way.

The Brooklyn bridge was completed in 1883. It is a suspension/cable-stay bridge. It was 50% longer than any bridge of that type that had been built before. I think that says a lot about the time in which this bridge was created. People were wanting to stretch the bounds of what they knew to be as bridges, and they wanted it to be astonishing. A lot of pain, hardship and suffering was endured by those who wished to see the success of the construction. I think that may be a large part of the reason the bridge stands as a symbol of pride, hope and awe to the people who live around it and to those who travel to come see it. The style of the bridge is dark like the color scheme they chose for it. The cables are what amaze me the most. The photography that has been captured of the bridge seems to really show the complexity of all the cables and wires and how they cross and connect.

The Golden Gate Bridge was completed in 1937. The structural design of the bridge is very similar to the Brooklyn Bridge. The big issue with the construction of this bridge was the natural weather patterns in the San Francisco area that could be hazardous to the design like super strong wind and fog. The bridge itself is much slimmer than the Brooklyn Bridge. This probably means that a bit more knowledge concerning bridge building was circling around at this time, and they knew how to make a bridge more efficient with less material. One of the designers suggested a thin roadway that would flex with the wind and allow the bridge to be more stable. The huge towers and bright orange color reveal that the people wanted it to be iconic, and it sure is. Photos that are taken of the Golden Gate are angled to showcase the bright color and the height and size of the bridge.