Today, I am thankful for those who build bridges and teach their offspring to do the same.
The English physicist Isaac Newton is often credited for saying one of my favorite quotes of all time: “Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.” Although widely attributed to Isaac Newton, the text has not been found in any of Newton’s writings. So why does he get the credit? Well, it turns out that the quote was made famous by the Dominican priest Dominique Pire in his Nobel Lecture in December 1958, but the Nobel Peace Prize winner referred to Newton by only the last name. He might actually have been paraphrasing another Newton, the Baptist minister and freemason Joseph Ford Newton, who had once written that men are inhabited by fear “…erecting walls around themselves instead of building bridges into the lives of others...” Sometimes we fail to give proper credit to those who truly deserve it, especially when it comes to building bridges that unite us.
Let me tell you an interesting historical anecdote to illustrate my point.
One of the famous builders of bridges was John Roebling, a German-born immigrant who has studied industrial engineering in Berlin as an adolescent and subsequently immigrated to western Pennsylvania in 1831. Unsuccessful as a farmer, he became a civil engineer in Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania and the then steel capital of the world. There, he perfected the art of wire cabling and formed his own cable-building company. He designed numerous suspension bridges, including one that bridged Canada and the United States across the Niagara Gorge. So, it should come as no surprise that the city of New York would accept his grandiose design to build a steel suspension bridge connecting Manhattan to the borough of Brooklyn. His image of a massive steel structure spanning the 1,595 feet across the East River was a thing of beauty, but its construction was no easy feat. Unfortunately, at the onset of the effort, a boat smashed into John’s toes while he was making some measurements. He developed tetanus and died within weeks.
Recognizing the gravity of his father’s work, John Roebling’s son, Washington, stepped in to fill the void. Having helped his father design the bridge, Washington was well suited to see the bridge to its rightful completion. He would actively participate in the effort, even participating in dives into the depths of the East River to build the granite foundations, which were encased in air-compressed caissons. Unfortunately, what was not known at the time is that rapid ascension from the depths of the river could lead to nitrogen bubbling in the bloodstream – a condition known as compression sickness. Like many others working on the foundation, Washington developed these ‘bends’, which left him partially paralyzed and bedridden for the remainder of his life. Committed to see his father’s vision become a reality, he continued to supervise the entire bridge effort from his home. Situated from his bed where he could see the bridge from a window, he would ask his wife, Emily, to shuttle instructions and messages to the workers on the bridge. After fourteen years, the Roeblings vision became a reality.
On this day (May 24) in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was ceremoniously opened by then-President Chester A. Arthur, and New York Governor Grover Cleveland. Emily Roebling was the first to cross the bridge, with a rooster in hand, as a symbol of victory. Washington watched from his window. Over the next 24 hours, an estimated quarter of a million people walked across the wide pedestrian promenade that the Roeblings had added to the structure. Irrespective of the time of day (or night), you can still see hordes of humanity ambulating across the bridge in their office shoes, Nike sneakers, and flip flops.
Yes, Newton was right: We need to construct more bridges and fewer walls. I’m not sure which Newton should get the credit, but when it comes to bridge building, it really does not matter who receives it. You don’t even need steel cables to build one. You just need compassion.
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