May 24th: On This Day in 1883 - Brooklyn Bridge Opens

May 24, 1883: The Brooklyn Bridge, linking Brooklyn and Manhattan over the East River opened to traffic. In 1883, it was the largest suspension bridge in the world and took over thirteen years to complete.

The bridge might not have been built, had it not been for Emily Warren Roebling. Her father-in-law, John Roebling, and her husband, Washington Roebling, are cited as the bridge's builders. Not long after construction began, John Roebling's legs were crushed by the bridge timbers, which eventually lead to his death as a result of an infection to the injury. Not long after that, Washington Roebling also suffered a paralyzing injury, as a result of decompression sickness from working underwater. Because both men could no longer continue overseeing the project, Emily took over, under her husband's guidance. She was a student of mathematics and spent the next eleven years supervising construction.

On the first day, a total of 1,800 vehicles and 150,300 people crossed what was then the only land passage between Manhattan and Long Island.