the great East River suspension bridge

Since its days of construction in the early 1880s, the Brooklyn Bridge has been an attractive subject for artists and photographers. Some of the best come from the Currier and Ives printmaking firm, including these two:*

{caption: The great East River suspension bridge: connecting the cities of New York and Brooklyn, looking west, c1883.}

{The great East River suspension bridge: connecting the cities of New York & Brooklyn, from New York looking south-east, c1877.}

This one comes from the Franklin Square Lithographic Co.

{caption: Bird's-eye view of the great suspension bridge, connecting the cities of New York and Brooklyn — from New York looking south-east, c1883 May 16.}

{caption: New York — completing a great work — lashing the stays of the Brooklyn Bridge / from a sketch by a staff artist, Frank Leslie's, April 28, 1883}

About two decades later, William Henry Jackson, shot this photograph of the bridge for the Detroit Publishing Co.

{caption: Brooklyn Bridge, New York, ca. 1900}

Here are two details from this image. They show a casual mingling of sail and steam vessels. The tugs that you see are pretty much the same as the ones in use through most of the 20th century and, for all I know, in this one as well.

Jackson took this photo at about the same time.

{caption: Brooklyn Bridge, New York, ca. 1900}

Here's a detail from it. The boat is very much like the broad, shallow-draft craft of the Dutch harbors.

These next shots come from anonymous photographers working for Detroit Publishing at the same time.

{caption: East River and Brooklyn Bridge, New York, N.Y. taken between 1900 and 1906}

Details

{Brooklyn terminal, Brooklyn Bridge, c1903.}

Details

{South Street and Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, c1901. This is a Photochrom print.}

{Brooklyn Bridge, New York, c1905.}

{Brooklyn Bridge, New York, N.Y. taken between 1905 and 1920}

Although this shot does not show the bridge, I couldn't resist including it.

{Manhattan entrance to Brooklyn Bridge, New York, taken between 1900 and 1906}

Details

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* Unless otherwise noted, the source of all images is the Library of Congress Prints and Photos Division.