The Brooklyn Bridge

To this day, the Brooklyn Bridge serves to connect Brooklyn, which was third largest city in the world in 1860, and New York. The idea of building the bridge came from a German Engineer named John Roebling. John was inspired to build the Brooklyn Bridge when he experienced a long and cold ferry ride from New York to Brooklyn. John realized the inconvenience the bridge served for many people especially since at the time, around 40% of wage earners in Brooklyn worked in New York. After experiencing the miserable a harsh conditions that many workers have to experience to get to cross the East River, he thought that he should propose a convenient bridge that connects the two major cities. John submitted the bridge ideas in 1857.  

John Roebling though later died while trying to heal from a ferryboat accident. His son, Washington Augustus Roebling, took over the project. With Washington taking over project, construction of the bridge began in 1870.

One of the hardships that occurred during the construction was the emergence of caisson disease.

Workers worked in 2 massive watertight chambers, deep into the river's floor which were called caissons.
Pressurized air was pumped into the caisson to allow underwater construction of the bridge's foundation. This created a low-quality circulation of air.
Often if people worked in the caisson for a period of time, they had a high chance of being infected with caisson disease.

One man out of three quit every week

Washington Roebling also got infected with this disease

           It was reported that Washington became paralyzed from this disease and the nervous condition from overwork and anxiety. Washington's wife, Emily Roebling, became an important asset to the bridge; she delivered Washington's instruction to the workers and took charge of the construction while Washington could only watch the construction from his house in Brooklyn Heights.

Picture of the interior of a caisson during the Brooklyn Bridge construction
Picture from The Brooklyn Bridge They Said It Couldn't Be Built  by Judith St. George

Picture of Washington Roebling viewing the Brooklyn Bridge construction from his home in Brooklyn Heights

Picture from Fine Arts America

Around 20 men died in the 14-year process of building the bridge.

With the dedication of the workers, though, the bridge opened as the Great East River Bridge on May 24, 1883 having 150300 people walking onto it during opening day.

As a result, the Brooklyn Bridge not only serves revolutionary landmark that connects two major cities, but is recognized to "an embodiment of the scientific knowledge of physical laws." (Cadbury 114)

            It was the first steel-cable suspension bridge in the world  

            It was the first bridge to be coated with metal zinc to protect it from rust
            The two 276.5-ft tall towers of the bridge were taller than any NYC building at the time
            It was the world's largest suspension bridge at the time
            Based from the astonishing achievements in the physical outcome, the bridge is claimed to be the "eighth wonder of the world"

With its convenience and amazing physical elements, it is no wonder why people fell in love the bridge



Picture of the Brooklyn Bridge and its surroundings in during the late 1800s

Picture from Brooklyn Museum



Fun Fact: Some people were skeptical about the sturdiness of the bridge since they have never seen such application of physics be done. To prove that the bridge was stable, circus owner P. T. Barnum led 21 elephants over the Brooklyn Bridge on May 17, 1884.
           

           
  

Trinity Church influence on Revolution and Other Relations

Not only was Trinity Church apart of financial ownership, but it reached out to the community as well during the revolution. Its connection with Wall Street was a crucial part how the church owned so much land and grew to have people come by regularly.

1.      Definitely Monumental

a.       George Washington’s inauguration was held here.

b.      Alexander Hamilton

c.       Buried in the cemetery

                                                              i.      Francis Lewis (signer of the Declaration of Independence)

                                                            ii.      Hugh Williamson  (signer of the U.S Constitution)

2.      Soldiers /Martyrs monument 

a.       Soldiers who died in revolutionary war   

3.      Trinity Wall Street has played a pivotal role in the religious and civic life of the city

a.       Gave two thirds of land to city and to religious institutions

                                                              i.      Episcopal, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic

b.      Gave back to the community

4.      Imagine you were a slave back then and once you were freed, you could go to school! Trinity Church created school for freed slaves in eighteenth century. If you were a slave during this time, by the American Revolutionary War, you constituted nearly a quarter of the population in the city, which had the second largest number of slaves in the nation after Charleston, South Carolina.

                                                              i.      Called Trinity Charity

1.      The city expanding they needed more members mission house, hospital, helping the elderly.. etc.

5.      A place where many could pray for their loved ones during the dark days and revolution.

6.      It’s relation to Occupy Wall Street

a.       Trinity is located near Zuccotti Park, the location of the Occupy Wall Street protest.

 It has offered both moral and practical support to the demonstrators. 

City Hall Park (the Commons)

Map of Lower Manhattan in the 1760s

The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution by Barnet Schecter

City Hall Park was once known as the Commons, before City Hall was built, but now houses over a dozen monuments.

            Purposes:

·      Dutch Era: a pasture - provided food and agriculture

·      British Era: the central place for protests (even today), executions, and gatherings

·      Here is also where the Declaration of Independence was read aloud and where the American flag was raised on Evacuation Day.

Protest outside City Hall (February 2011)

WalMart Protest2 Katie Fisher.jpg

            Nathan Hale statue:

·      Who is Nathan Hale?

o   He was a spy in the Continental Army, but unfortunately, he was caught and hung by General William Howe.

·      Nathan Hale was rumored to be imprisoned here

·      Represents liberty, since Hale was a freedom fighter

·      Hale faces City Hall’s entrance plaza

o   Controversy: Hale’s face is facing away from the public, which is ironic since he sacrificed his life for them for freedom and independence

Liberty Pole:

·      All the liberty poles were built in this park, but the only known location is of the fifth pole (built in 1776), where the sixth pole (built in 1921) stands.

·      Was built to show unity and freedom

Bowling Green

Zachary Canelos

Bowling Green

• Bowling Green located at the southern tip of Manhattan
• It is New York City’s oldest park
• Some people claim that it is the place where Native American tribes sold Manhattan Island to Dutch Governor Peter Minuit in the year 1626 for $24
• After the British took over in 1664, they treated the land as public property
• John Chambers, Peter Bayard, and Peter Jay leased the land from the British
• They improved the park with the addition of trees, a wooden fence and an actual bowling green
• In 1770, a huge statue of King George III on his horse was placed in the middle of the park
• New York City merchants helped to pay for the statue as a way to thank the British for repealing the Stamp Act of 1770
• A crown of excited demonstrators decided to bring down the statue and tear it to pieces as an act of independence in 1776
  
  

   

Washington's Evacuation

So for just a second, I want everyone here to try and imagine they were back in the Continental Army. Got it? Ok good. Now imagine it’s your first battle against the British, and you are excited to fight for freedom. But being an artisan, a man with no experience with war, you and your comrades get thrashed in battle. Completely smacked. Many of your friends die or are injured, screaming in pain. You represent the newest nation on earth, against the strongest nation on earth. The enemies army is better trained, better equipped, and are overwhelming in numbers, 30,000 cold-blooded killers. The Continental Army is cornered at Brooklyn Heights, presumably for a final stand. The only thing separating you from merciless British soldiers is a deep fog. You are cold, tired, and demoralized. However, when all hope is lost, you see a man shouting orders. Telling people to move crates, load horses and organize troops. Boats are being loaded up and everyone seems to be in a rush. You think “What can possibly done?” Suddenly, that same man who you saw giving orders snatches your arm, and gives you directions on where to go for evacuation. Surrounded with nowhere to go, you slowly nod and listen to him. You board a ship and cross the river, looking back to see that same man making sure everyone gets on a ship. You pray that you won’t be seen. Before you know it, you had crossed the river, away from the British trap.

Okay, to clarify in case you didn’t get my little spiel, I was describing Washington’s escape from Brooklyn. Not only was it a remarkable escape, playing with elements of both luck and ingenuity, it solidified the trust the men had in George Washington. Not only had he enacted on this crazy plan, He had managed to evacuate all surviving men, 9000 in total, without a single casualty. Just the scope of what Washington did is crazy. Another remarkable thing to remember is that Washington didn’t leave Brooklyn until all his men were evacuated. He genuinely cared for his troops and showed his determination.

On a larger scope, Washington’s escape from Britain gave hope to the newly founded nation. Even though the Continental army didn’t win the battle, the escape showed that the British could be outsmarted. From this experience, the Continental army learned not to ever face Britain in an open formal battle, but smaller guerilla tactical skirmishes were far more affective.

If Washington and the Continental army had failed to escape, we probably wouldn’t even be the United States.  

To get into specifics about the river crossing:
-Retreat commenced on August 27, 1776
-the boats were in place for many weeks before the actual crossing, hidden from sight by George Washington's orders.
-not many men actually knew how to swim, so there were some crazy moments where someone would fall in, slowing down the process.
-the men who had to take turns chopping ice down at the shore to allow the ships to land because the water kept freezing over
-After regrouping, the men received no rest and had to march on to Trenton

http://www.brooklynonline.com/bol/history/battle.xhtml

Bibliography:



Levin, Jack E., and Mark R. Levin. George Washington: The Crossing. NYC: Threshold Editions, 2013. Print.

Griffith, Samuel B. The War for American Independence: From 1760 to the Surrender at Yorktown in 1781. Urbana: University of Illinois, 2002. Print.

Homberger, Eric. The Historical Atlas of New York City: A Visual Celebration of Nearly 400 Years of New York City's History. New York: H. Holt and, 1994. Print.


Leutze, Emanuel. "USDC - District of New Hampshire - Washington Crossing the Delaware."USDC - District of New Hampshire - Washington Crossing the Delaware. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2013. 

African Burial Ground History

African Burial Ground

The African Burial Ground was home to the graves of African New Yorkers during the years between 1600 and 1796.

• Served as a place for Africans to bury and perform rituals for their deceased loved ones since Church cemeteries did not allow the burial of Africans  

•  Representation of African repression and treatment during the colonial era

o   Site of African executions during the 1712 slave rebellion and 1741 slave conspiracy

o   “Doctor’s Riot” – an expression against medical students who stole corpses from the burial grounds and used them for education dissections

o   Laws were passed to put into place strict regulations for African funeral rituals

•  419 corpses have been unveiled but as many as 20,000 Africans are left to be discovered under the foundations of Lower Manhattan