Indholdsfortegnelse for March/April 2025 i Cobblestone American History and Current Events for Kids and Children

As John A. Roebling was designing his bridge, life in New York and Brooklyn was teetering between old and new. No bridges existed between the two cities. Travelers used one of the 13 ferryboats that crossed the East River night and day. From the river, the spire of Trinity Church in New York was the tallest landmark to ships sailing in New York Harbor. People mostly traveled by horses and carriages and on sailing ships, but the use of railroads and steamships was growing. Communication was by mail or telegraph. Just a few years earlier, however, a telegraph cable had been laid across the Atlantic Ocean. In less than a decade, Alexander Graham Bell would invent the telephone. All over the world, new and amazing engineering feats were being accomplished:…

Emily Warren Roebling was not a typical Victorian-era woman. Born into the prominent Warren family of Cold Springs, New York, in 1843, she was a daring tomboy who idolized her older brother, Gouverneur Kemble Warren. He encouraged her to study higher mathematics and the sciences instead of the usual lessons for girls, such as harpsichord and needlepoint. While visiting her brother during his Civil War (1861–1865) service, Emily was introduced to a member of his staff, Colonel Washington A. Roebling. It was love at first sight, and they were married in January 1865. During the first years of marriage, Washington and Emily toured Europe to learn about caissons for possible use in the next project being designed by Washington’s father. Emily was a quick learner, and her knowledge grew along…

Today 10 bridges, 15 tunnels, and one tramway span the East River. Most of the tunnels carry only subway lines or commuter trains. A few tunnels carry only water. The bridges carry a mix of everything from pedestrians to vehicles to subway lines. All these structures continue what the Brooklyn Bridge began—connecting the five boroughs of New York City to one another and accommodating the millions of people who live, go to school, and work there. In addition to the Brooklyn Bridge, three other major bridges span the East River today. The Williamsburg Bridge replaced the Brooklyn Bridge as the longest suspension bridge in the world when it was completed in 1903. The Manhattan Bridge, completed in 1909, is another suspension bridge. It also links Manhattan and Brooklyn. Also completed…

Did you know that the word “bridge” has more than 10 definitions in the dictionary? The Brooklyn Bridge is an example of the primary definition, which is a “structure that provides passage over a gap or barrier, such as a river or roadway.” Here are some of the other meanings for the word. A bridge is a “replacement tooth that connects to nearby natural teeth, which are relied upon to keep the replacement tooth in place.” The “upper bony ridge that shapes a nose” is called a bridge, as is the part of a pair of glasses that rest there. In the music world, a bridge is a “thin piece of wood that supports the strings on string instruments.” Another music-related definition is a “piece of transitional music that fills…

May 25, 1883 On a beautiful cloudless day, thousands of people gathered for the opening of what is being called the Eighth Wonder of the World! Spanning the East River at a distance of 1,596 feet 6 inches, the New York and Brooklyn Bridge is the first-ever land connection between the cities of New York and Brooklyn. It’s the world’s longest suspension bridge, and its two stone towers are the tallest structures in the entire Western Hemisphere. It is the first suspension bridge built with steel cable wires. After 13 years of construction, the two cities turned out to celebrate the grand opening of this engineering marvel. Yesterday, May 24, 1883, was proclaimed “the People’s Day” by the New York Bridge Company. The air was festive indeed! Many businesses and…

As a child, Washington A. Roebling did not see much of his father. John A. Roebling was a surveyor and civil engineer and often off building aqueducts and bridges in a young country that was looking for ways to expand. When Washington was four years old, however, his father returned home to the small frontier village of Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, which he had helped found. He needed to make wire rope for one of his projects. The process consisted of tightly winding strands of fine wire to form one thick rope. It was one of John’s greatest inventions and a fascinating process to watch. It kindled in Washington a love of all things mechanical. In 1857, Washington graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, with a degree in civil…

While serving in the Union army during the Civil War (1861–1865), Washington A. Roebling used reconnaissance balloons to watch the enemy’s movements. During a flight in the spring of 1863, he discovered that Confederate general Robert E. Lee was on the move—toward Gettysburg. The two caissons to hold the bridge’s towers were so big that Washington A. Roebling hired a shipbuilding company to construct them. They were made of yellow pine, which was not only airtight but so saturated with natural pitch that the wood didn’t even float! John A. Roebling designed the anchorage for the bridge’s cables on the Brooklyn side also to function as a vault or storage space, and for a while the Brooklyn anchorage was used for art exhibitions. After seeing the publicity that surrounded Neil…

Can you solve this crossword puzzle about the Brooklyn Bridge? All the answers can be found in this issue. The solution is on page 49. ACROSS 2. The Brooklyn Bridge’s four giant steel _____ consist of many strands of wire wound together into a thick metal rope.4. Circus showman P.T. Barnum led a parade of his circus animals—including camels and _____—across the bridge to prove it was safe for people.5. Another word for decompression sickness is the _____.8. A _____ bridge has no visible supports. It relies on a roadway hung from cables attached to towers.9. The original designer and chief engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge was John A. _____.10. _____ are upside-down compartments that provide dry space for laborers to work underwater. DOWN 1. When his father died in 1869,…

A bridge made of granite and cables, was built across the East River in 1883. When it was completed, it provided the first man-made link between Brooklyn and Manhattan. It took John A. Roebling’s idea, Washington A. Roebling’s commitment, and Emily Warren Roebling’s determination to make sure the bridge was built. More than 140 years later, the bridge remains. For vehicles, pedestrians, and bicyclists, it still connects New Yorkers: the historic Brooklyn Bridge. Maeve Gregory, age 12 Buffalo, New York Dear Readers, Draw a picture or write a poem or a short essay that connects to a U.S. history topic that interests you. All contributions must be your original work. Include a note from a parent or a legal guardian clearly stating: “This is my child’s original work, and COBBLESTONE…

After the untimely death of his father, Washington A. Roebling became the chief engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge on August 3, 1869. “Here I was, 32 years old,” Roebling wrote, “suddenly in charge of the most stupendous engineering structure of the age.” His father’s design called for two towers rising offshore from New York and Brooklyn. They would support four giant steel cables, anchored onto land at each end. The middle bridge clearance would be 135 feet above the East River. Now all Roebling had to do was build it. From the Bottom Up Construction began in 1870, with Roebling overseeing the building of two giant caissons. The caissons were upside-down wooden boxes divided into large chambers. Their bottom footprint was as big as half a city block. Just as…

Have your ears ever popped going up or down a mountain or landing in an airplane? If yes, then you’ve experienced a change in air pressure. Normally, going from places with high air pressure to normal or low pressure is not a problem. But if you do it too quickly and experience a rapid and substantial decrease in atmospheric pressure on your body, you could get “THE BENDS.” Today, we call this condition decompression sickness. It is caused by the formation and then release of nitrogen bubbles in the bloodstream. These bubbles cut off blood flow, and therefore oxygen, to the body. Its symptoms are intense physical cramps, numbness, dizziness, vomiting, swollen joints, and confusion. A mild, continuing case of it can cause joint and bone damage. Its most severe form can…

John A. Roebling and Washington A. Roebling probably would be pleased to see how well their bridge has stood the test of time. While people still enjoy an elevated walkway on the Brooklyn Bridge, trolley cars and horse-drawn carriages have given way to automobiles and bicycles today. A 142-year-old bridge that handles typical weekday crossings of about 30,000 pedestrians, 3,000 bicyclists, and 120,000 vehicles doesn’t stay in good condition without help, however. It requires a team of people to provide repairs and regular maintenance. When an accident damages the bridge, a small army of workers springs into action. “The bridge is robust, but things do happen to it,” says Department of Transportation (DOT) Deputy Chief Engineer Russell Holcomb. Holcomb is in charge of maintaining the four big bridges that cross…

More than 100 years after the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge, suspension bridges are still being built all over the world . . . and every year they get longer and taller! A Nation of Islands Japan is a nation that consists of more than 14,000 islands, but people live on only about 260 of them. To get between them, people rely on ferries and planes. In 1998, Japan completed construction of the Akashi–Kaikyo Bridge. It connects one of the nation’s larger islands, Honshu, with Awaji Island. The bridge was part of a larger project to link several of the nation’s major islands. It took 10 years to build. The bridge’s main span was 6,529 feet. That’s more than a mile long. Engineers conducted wind tunnel test with models to…