From the earliest surviving stone bridges and romantic wooden covered bridges to the monumental Brooklyn and Golden Gate suspension spans, here is American grace and strength at its best. Landmark American Bridges is a visual feast documenting American progress and illustrating the history of bridge building, transportation, and engineering.Organized chronologically, Landmark American Bridges includes five sections: Turnpike, Canal, and Railroad Bridges of the pre-Civil War Era; Civil War Era Metal Truss Bridges; Era of the American Standard Bridge; Great River Crossings; and Modern Developments. The photographs have been selected from more than 900 bridges documented in the collection of the Historic American Engineering Record. Also included are a listing of historic bridges and a time line which highlights significant events in the evolution of world bridge building.Few structures define the American experience, landscape, and spirit as well as bridges. They symbolize pioneering, inventive entrepreneurship while giving definition to cities and character to the countryside. America's landmark bridges evoke a proud heritage of beauty, utility, and technological inspiration and foretell a future of accomplishment and engineering innovation.