File:Roebling Bridge, Cincinnati, OH - 52280196935.jpg

English: The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge spans the Ohio River, and connects the cities of Covington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio. Begun in 1856, it was designed and built by famed engineer John A. Roebling, whom went on to design the more famous Brooklyn Bridge in New York City. The bridge’s planning began a decade prior, when the Covington and Cincinnati Bridge Company was incorporated. Political obstacles led to the project’s stagnation for nearly a decade. When work finally begun, the bridge’s northern landing in Ohio was put at an awkward spot; Rather than lining up directly with the street networks of Covington and Cincinnati, a mid-block location was chosen in hopes it would keep Cincinnati’s preeminence over the region and block the possibility of Covington and Newport gaining ground on the city. In 1856, with Amos Shinkle brought on to helm the board of trustees of the company, the project began to move forward. In September, 1856, the digging of the bridge’s foundations began. The towers, constructed of Sandstone covered with limestone, sit on a foundation of 13 layers of oak beams that rest on a bed of gravel beneath the river. The progress on the bridge was subject to being halted several times, due to funding issues. After the threat of a confederate raid became clear during the Civil War, funding poured in and the bridge’s construction continued at a much faster pace. It opened in 1866, with construction finishing the following year. The bridge originally was built with cost-saving measures, including a wooden deck and light steel frame, both of which were replaced in 1896 with a heavier steel elements, along with several more sets of cables and the removal of the original decorative elements atop the towers in favor of simpler, steel domes. The bridge has since been restored to its 1867 appearance, while tolls were finally removed in 1967. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975 and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1983, today the Roebling Bridge is an iconic landmark of the Queen City, and one of the city’s most recognizable structures.