{"id":1354,"date":"2014-07-31T10:29:26","date_gmt":"2014-07-31T14:29:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=1354"},"modified":"2025-04-18T11:05:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T15:05:09","slug":"bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/","title":{"rendered":"Bridge opened with flags and fireworks | Brooklyn Bridge"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Fireworks<\/a>
Fireworks and flags marked the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Brooklyn Bridge made news recently due to the mysterious appearance of two bleached American flags<\/a> that were placed atop the historic span by nighttime intruders.<\/p>\n

On May 24, 1883, flags played a major role \u2013 in broad daylight and well into the evening \u2013 when the Brooklyn Bridge opened to much hoopla. Lighting up the flags that night was a grand display of fireworks.<\/p>\n

Called by newspapers \u201cone of the most gigantic and difficult engineering enterprises ever undertaken,\u201d the Brooklyn Bridge was all that and more. It\u2019s no wonder, then, that its debut was festooned with flags from its own tip-top to the topmasts of ships sailing under it.<\/p>\n

\"With<\/a>
With flags flying above him, President Arthur leads the first walk across the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Worcester Spy in Massachusetts described how the baptism of the bridge included President Chester Arthur, who walked across it accompanied by \u201cthe ringing of bells, blowing of whistles, waving flags [and] cheers of the populace.\u201d<\/p>\n

In New York City,<\/a> the Tribune noted that \u201cthe station building at the Brooklyn end of the Bridge has been decorated lavishly with festooned flags, the coats of arms of all the States between the windows, and blue velvet hangings with gold embroidery.\u201d<\/p>\n

The splurge of red, white and blue on the bridge spilled over to the cities at either end of the span. The same paper reported that \u201call the public buildings, all the structures in the business part of the city and many private houses will be brilliant with candles, gas, lamps and Chinese lanterns. Flags innumerable were sold.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Washington<\/a>
Washington Roebling during the Civil War<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The result of all that decoration, said a Washington, D.C., journal, was buildings \u201cprofusely decorated with flags and bunting<\/a>,\u201d giving \u201ca holiday appearance to the scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

Newspapers added to the festivities by flying their own colors. \u201cThe Sun building is handsomely ornamented with flags, shields and bunting,\u201d the D.C. paper recorded. And even more American flags flew or hung from buildings on Broadway in NYC and in Brooklyn Heights. The embellishments, noted the Washington newspaper, were \u201celaborate and costly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flags and flowers were also used to bedeck one special home near the Brooklyn Bridge. Located at 110 Columbia Heights, it was the residence of Washington Roebling. From there, as an invalid confined to bed because of \u201cthe bends,\u201d which he had developed by going beneath the East River, he had overseen the construction of the fantastic bridge, which had been designed by his German-born father and now was streaming with American flags.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Brooklyn Bridge made news recently due to the mysterious appearance of two bleached American flags that were placed atop the historic span by nighttime intruders. On May 24, 1883, flags played a major role \u2013 in broad daylight and well into the evening \u2013 when the Brooklyn Bridge opened to much hoopla. Lighting up… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[28,207,3,19],"class_list":["post-1354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-american-flags","tag-brooklyn-bridge","tag-history","tag-patriotism"],"yoast_head":"\nBrooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Brooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks. History links the bridge and flags from 1883 until the 2014 raising of white flags.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Brooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Brooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks. History links the bridge and flags from 1883 until the 2014 raising of white flags.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-07-31T14:29:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-18T15:05:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Fireworks-and-flags-marked-the-opening-of-the-Brooklyn-Bridge.-300x201.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"James Breig\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"James Breig\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/\",\"name\":\"Brooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/bridge-opened-flags-fireworks-brooklyn-bridge\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Fireworks-and-flags-marked-the-opening-of-the-Brooklyn-Bridge.-300x201.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-07-31T14:29:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-18T15:05:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/048662cff3dee1c17360c4683b5fe03a\"},\"description\":\"Brooklyn Bridge opened with flags and fireworks. 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