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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which state does Gouverneur Kemble (G.K.) map while he is a teenager?

2. How fast will the cable cars that travel the Brooklyn Bridge travel?

3. Why does Roebling want to add 1,000 pounds of trusses to the Brooklyn Bridge?

4. Which of the following adjectives does NOT describe Emily Warren?

5. How far away is Roebling's new house in Columbia Ridge from the bridge?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Roebling decide to make a public appearance before the completion of the bridge, and how does he look to the public?

2. What is life like for Washington Roebling during the three years he is forced to live in Trenton?

3. What problem do local reporters have with the temporary footbridge put into place for workers who are "spinning" up the bridge?

4. What happens during the "rope fall" of 1878?

5. Why do the bridge workers go on strike in 1872.

6. How did Emily Warren help keep the Brooklyn Bridge project afloat when her husband became ill?

7. What happens when Low takes Roebling to court for management power?

8. How does Washington resign from office, and what is his life like after his resignation?

9. What was work like for the men who first began construction on the Brooklyn footbridge?

10. How does Emily help Washington celebrate the bridge's completion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the epilogue of this novel, David McCullough takes great liberties in comparing the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge to many other feats of technology in the 20th century. Choose two of the feats McCullough examines in the text and explain why you do / do not think his comparison is a fair one, and why.

Essay Topic 2

The news media played a large role in shaping the way the public viewed the bridge. Create a time line of headlines that were prominently featured in the text. Then, explain how two of these major headlines affected the way the public viewed the Brooklyn Bridge.

Essay Topic 3

"The Bends" was a horribly debilitating disorder that infected many of the workers on the Brooklyn Bridge, including Roebling himself. Explain how "The Bends" began its onset in the workers, and what its symptoms were. Then, explain what methods Roebling adopted to ensure his workers would no longer suffer from the disorder.

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This section contains 915 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample