Pulling Rank - Brooklyn Historical Society

Pulling Rank
When the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge opened on November 21, 1964, it was the longest suspension bridge in
the world. It now ranks sixth. Below, find the lengths of the world’s longest suspension spans.
Use the information to complete the bar graph. The first bridge, Akashi-Kaikyo, has been filled in as an example.
Bridge
Length of
Main Span
Location
Year
Opened
Akashi-Kaikyo
6,529 feet
Japan
1998
Great Belt (East)
5,328 feet
Denmark
1998
Humber
4,626 feet
England
1981
Jiangyin Yangtze
4,544 feet
China
1999
Tsing Ma
4,518 feet
China
1997
Verrazano-Narrows
4,260 feet
United States
1964
main span:
area between
the bridge’s
two towers
VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE FROM EMPIRE STATE BUILDING, APRIL 2004
PHOTO COURTESY JANE BARBER
Bridge
Length of Main Span (Feet)
5,280 Feet (One Mile)
Akashi-Kaikyo
Great Belt (East)
Humber
Jiangyin Yangtze
Tsing Ma
Verrazano-Narrows
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
5000
5500
6000
6500
7000
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
The Big Squeeze
The workers in this photograph are compressing, or squeezing together, the wires that form the four cables on the
Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The cable on the left has been compressed by the machine with the man on top. The cable
on the right is uncompressed. Do you see the wires bundled together? These bundles are called strands.
Each strand contains 428 wires. Sixty-one strands make a cable.
So.... How many wires are in one cable?
Figure it out here.
There are ________ wires in one cable.
Now, can you figure out how many wires
are in 4 cables?
________ wires per cable x 4 cables = ________
PAUL RUBENSTEIN/LENOX STUDIOS, SEPTEMBER 12, 1963
COLLECTION OF MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS SPECIAL ARCHIVE
Turn the sheet over for another activity to do at home or school.
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Make a cable:
Each cable on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is 36 inches in diameter. How big is that?
Try the activity below and find out!
On a sheet of butcher paper,
or two sheets of newspaper taped
together, measure a circle.
Mark a center point then use
a ruler to draw 18-inch lines
out from the center, like
spokes on a wheel. Each line
measures the radius. The
longest distance from one
end of the circle to the other
is the diameter. Connect the
end points to form a circle
36 inches in diameter.
Could you wrap your
arms around a cable?
diameter: 36 inches
rad
ius:
18
inch
es
If the cables were
hollow could you fit
inside?
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Building the Bridge
THE SPINNING OF THE CABLES,
MAY 1963
COLLECTION OF
MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS
SPECIAL ARCHIVE
THE SPINNING OF THE CABLES,
LILI RÉTHI, MAY 1963
COLLECTION OF
MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS
SPECIAL ARCHIVE
Photographs and illustrations documented the construction of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The drawing you see on
the right is by Lili Réthi. Réthi came to New York from Vienna, Austria, to cover the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair
for the Illustrated London News
News, and stayed in New York until she died in 1969. Construction was her favorite subject.
Her last project was a series of drawings of the World Trade Center, which was under construction in 1966.
Compare and contrast the two images shown here. What is the same? What is different?
Turn the sheet over to continue with this activity.
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Look at this photograph of the completed bridge.
Make your own drawing here.
VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE
MICHAEL KAMBER, 1997
COLLECTION OF MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS SPECIAL ARCHIVE
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Up in the Air
Scared of heights? Not these guys. The men in this photograph are working high above New York’s harbor on the
Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. Imagine you are there, too. Describe your work in a letter to friends and family members.
What did you do today? What is the hardest part of your job? What do you like most about your work?
Describe the view.
Dear
WORKERS INSTALLING ELECTRIC CABLE ALONGSIDE THE CATWALK
PAUL RUBENSTEIN/LENOX STUDIOS, JANUARY 10, 1963
COLLECTION OF MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS SPECIAL ARCHIVE
Love,
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
A Plaque Marks the Spot
From the 1950s until 1993, plaques
[plaks] like this marked buildings and
structures operated by the Triborough
Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA).
This plaque was outside a garage near
the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. There is
another one like it near the entrance
to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.
Look carefully at the details.
What do owls, beavers, and leaves have to do with bridges
and tunnels, you wonder? It’s all in the symbolism.
Find these elements in the plaque:
owl
beaver
leaves
The owl is a symbol of wisdom and patience.
The beaver symbolizes building, or construction.
Laurel leaves symbolize victory, or triumph.
It takes patience to build bridges and tunnels, and completing
these projects is a major accomplishment.
TRIBOROUGH BRIDGE AND TUNNEL AUTHORITY PLAQUE, CA. 1956
COLLECTION OF MTA BRIDGES AND TUNNELS SPECIAL ARCHIVE
Turn the sheet over for another activity.
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Make your own plaque.
Your plaque can mark your classroom or your bedroom.
What symbols will you include in your plaque? What words and numbers will you use?
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN
Would you like to learn more about bridges?
Check out the books and Web sites listed below.
Books:
Ages 9-12
Ages 4-8
Bridges Are to Cross
Philemon Sturges
Illustrated by Giles Laroche
32 pages
Web Sites:
Building Big
www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig
NOVA Online: Super Bridge
pbs.org/nova/bridge
Bridges
Etta Kaner
Illustrated by Pat Cupples
48 pages
Bridges!: Amazing Structures to Design,
Build & Test
Carol A. Johmann and Elizabeth J. Rieth
96 pages
Bridges: From My Side to Yours
Jan Adkins
96 pages
The Art of Construction: Projects and Principles
for Beginning Engineers & Architects
Mario Salvadori
Illustrated by Saralinda Hooker and
Christopher Ragus
160 pages
B R OOK L Y N
H I STOR I C A L
S O C I E T Y
BEAUTY SUSPENDED: THE VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE TURNS FORTY
© 2004 BHS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
WRITER: JAIME JOYCE
DESIGN: JANE BARBER DESIGN