Draft #1

Caissons the Foundation of Unification

            The Brooklyn Bridge in today’s world its seen as a tourist attraction worldwide. In “The Brooklyn Bridge” by Elizabeth Mann, it explains the history behind the Brooklyn Bridge and the challenges that were faced throughout it was being built. Before the Brooklyn Bridge existed, people had to take ferry boats to get across from Brooklyn to New York (Manhattan). John Roebling was an engineer from Germany and specialized in building bridges. Due to the lack of opportunities in the built of bridges in Germany, John Roebling moved to the United States in 1831. John took matters into his own hands and designed a bridge that would span across the East River that separated Brooklyn and New York, The Brooklyn Bridge. However, John Roebling never constructed the bridge itself, it was his son Washington Roebling that conducted the supervision of the construction of the bridge. Tragically, Washington contracted caisson disease, which caused that Washington never returned to the bridge. During this time his wife Emily Roebling took over for him, without any experience Emily eventually won the respect of the workers. Which led to the opening of the bridge on May 24, 1883. Although various factors were vital for the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, the wooden caissons were the most important. It created a solid base for the bridge to stand on, without the caissons the construction of the bridge would’ve never taken place and Brooklyn would’ve never been able to develop and grow.

            Although many admire the structural design and its importance of the Brooklyn bridge, many forget amount of manpower that it took to build the Brooklyn bridge. Washington knew that the bridge would need a solid foundation. Which is how he utilized caissons, a massive wooden box, which at the time were commonly used in small bridges throughout Europe. Washington had to increase the size of the caissons, this process was time consuming, and it took a lot of manpower. Many workers or “sandhogs” would be put inside these airtight chambers and would dig down until bedrock was reached. “To achieve a solid foundation for the bridge, workers excavated the riverbed in massive wooden boxes called caissons. These airtight chambers were pinned to the river’s floor by enormous granite blocks; pressurized air was pumped in to keep water and debris out.” (History.com Editors, 2010) Eventually bedrock was reached at the Brooklyn caisson, with a depth of 44 ½ feet below the river. The New York caisson faced a bigger challenge, the caisson sank much deeper than the Brooklyn side, which led to many workers quitting because they knew that it would be a much more difficult job. After the depth of 78 ½ feet, Washington made the decision that it would be enough to support the bridge tower. Although it was a big risk, the caissons were hollowed and filled with concrete and other material to create the supports for the two bridge towers. Regardless of the amount of time and manpower it took to conduct such task as the caissons, the two supports are still standing and in good shape. The importance of the caissons could clearly be seen in today’s world, it allows people to move from Brooklyn to Manhattan with ease, just how it was intended to.

  Nevertheless, the caissons weren’t just the foundations for the historical bridge. It also meant economic growth for Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Bridge allowed those that lived in Brooklyn to get jobs in Manhattan. By creating this chain of work many of the Brooklyn residents that worked in Manhattan were able to invest their earned money back in Brooklyn. “The bridge made it easier for Brooklyn residents to commute to jobs in thriving Manhattan. The dollars earned in Manhattan were spent on developing new housing in Brooklyn” (Bridge Masters, 2018) By allowing such economic growth for the residents of Brooklyn, it led to the growth of the population. “Brooklyn’s population grew from 580,000 people the year the bridge opened to just over a million 15 years later.” (Bridge Masters, 2018) In today’s the Brooklyn Bridge is used very often by drivers. In a way without the foundation built by the caissons, the Brooklyn Bridge would have never existed, leading to an undeveloped Brooklyn and a forgotten city.            

In short, a man’s dream created various opportunities for the future. The use of the caissons created the foundation of the Brooklyn Bridge that still stands. By creating this foundation, it also created an economic pathway for Brooklyn to develop and grow. Allowing its residents to get better jobs and investing back to their homes. Not only allowing economic growth but also growth in the population.

Draft #2

Caissons the Foundation of Unification

The Brooklyn Bridge in today’s world its seen as a tourist attraction worldwide. In “The Brooklyn Bridge” by Elizabeth Mann, it explains the history behind the Brooklyn Bridge and the challenges that were faced throughout its construction. Before the Brooklyn Bridge existed, people had to take ferry boats to get across from Brooklyn to New York (Manhattan). John Roebling was an engineer from Germany and specialized in building bridges. Due to the lack of opportunities in the building of bridges in Germany, John Roebling moved to the United States in 1831. John took matters into his own hands and designed a bridge that would span across the East River that separated Brooklyn and New York, The Brooklyn Bridge. However, John Roebling never constructed the bridge itself, it was his son Washington Roebling that conducted the supervision of the construction of the bridge. Tragically, Washington contracted caisson disease, which caused that Washington never returned to the bridge. During this time his wife Emily Roebling took over for him, without any experience Emily eventually won the respect of the workers. Which led to the opening of the bridge on May 24, 1883. Although various factors were vital for the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, the wooden caissons were the most important. It created a solid base for the bridge to stand on, without the caissons the construction of the bridge would’ve never taken place and Brooklyn would’ve never been able to develop and grow.

            Although many admire the structural design and its importance for the Brooklyn bridge, many forget the amount of manpower that it took to build the Brooklyn Bridge. Washington knew that the bridge would need a solid foundation. Which is how he utilized caissons, a massive wooden box, which at the time were commonly used in small bridges throughout Europe. Washington had to increase the size of the caissons. This process was time consuming, and it took a lot of manpower. Many workers or “sandhogs” would be put inside these airtight chambers and would dig down until bedrock was reached. “To achieve a solid foundation for the bridge, workers excavated the riverbed in massive wooden boxes called caissons. These airtight chambers were pinned to the river’s floor by enormous granite blocks; pressurized air was pumped in to keep water and debris out.” (History.com Editors, 2010) Eventually bedrock was reached at the Brooklyn caisson, with a depth of 44 ½ feet below the river. The New York caisson faced a bigger challenge, the caisson sank much deeper than the Brooklyn side, which led to many workers quitting because they knew that it would be a much more difficult job. After the depth of 78 ½ feet, Washington made the decision that it would be enough to support the bridge tower. Although it was a big risk, the caissons were hollowed and filled with concrete and other material to create the supports for the two bridge towers. (Wikipedia, Brooklyn Bridge) Regardless of the amount of time and manpower it took to conduct such task as the caissons, the two supports are still standing and in good shape. The importance of the caissons could clearly be seen in today’s world, it allows people to move from Brooklyn to Manhattan with ease, just how it was intended to.

            Nevertheless, the caissons weren’t just the foundations for the historical bridge. It also meant economic growth for Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Bridge allowed those that lived in Brooklyn to get jobs in Manhattan. By creating this chain of work many of the Brooklyn residents that worked in Manhattan were able to invest their earned money back in Brooklyn. “The bridge made it easier for Brooklyn residents to commute to jobs in thriving Manhattan. The dollars earned in Manhattan were spent on developing new housing in Brooklyn” (Bridge Masters, 2018) By allowing such economic growth for the residents of Brooklyn, it led to the growth of the population. “Brooklyn’s population grew from 580,000 people the year the bridge opened to just over a million 15 years later.” (Bridge Masters, 2018) In today’s the Brooklyn Bridge is used very often by drivers. In a way without the foundation built by the caissons, the Brooklyn Bridge would have never existed, leading to an undeveloped Brooklyn and a forgotten city.            

In short, a man’s dream created various opportunities for the future. The use of the caissons created the foundation of the Brooklyn Bridge that still stands. By creating this foundation, it also created an economic pathway for Brooklyn to develop and grow. Allowing its residents to get better jobs and investing back to their homes. Not only allowing economic growth but also growth in the population.