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If you were asked to list what you think are the 5 most famous bridges in the United States, you'd probably start out with the Golden Gate Bridge, most likely followed by the Brooklyn Bridge. But then what? Which other bridges do you think would comprise the 5 most famous ones in this country?
The Eads Bridge in St. Louis was completed in 1874 -- the first and longest steel bridge across the Mississippi River. It was made to last 1,000 years and so far, so good. It carries rail and road traffic. To prove skeptics wrong they had an elephant parade across the bridge to prove its strength when completed. It is just north of the Gateway Arch and commands its own presence as an engineering marvel.
James Eades built it. He previously built iron-clad Mississippi River Union gunboats during the Civil War and later was responsible for engineering jetties to keep the river channel open for navigation below New Orleans.
After the Golden Gate and Brooklyn bridges, maybe the Verrazano-Narrows, between Brooklyn and Staten Island. It's the longest suspension bridge in the country. (Trivia fact: It is so long that the designers had to take into account the curvature of the earth to build it.)
And of course anyone who has seen the movie Saturday Night Fever knows the bridge plays a big part.
Queensboro/59th street bridge. Becaue it seems like my way into the city whether I fly into JFK or LaGuardia, as I’m sure it’s for many others too. Plus it has notoriety from the Simon and Garfunkel song of the same name (feeling groovy).
I’d put the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge on the list. While clearly overshadowed by the Golden Gate, it did get plenty of attention worldwide when it collapsed during the 1989 earthquake.
I would say Mackinac Bridge is up there too, but I wonder if that’s because I spent time in Michigan visiting family growing up, and went to college there.
Here’s one outside the box. London Bridge in Lake Havasu, AZ. It’s the first Bridge you’re made aware of as a child through the nursery rhyme. Just not sure how many people are aware it was dismantled and moved to AZ.
Honestly unless you’re into bridges I’m not sure how famous any of them really are outside the Golden Gate Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge.
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