The Brooklyn Bridge opens as the longest suspension bridge in the world on May 24, 1883. Spanning across the East River, the Brooklyn Bridge connects the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. The excitement and celebration of the opening are soon tainted by a stampede, caused by panic after a late afternoon accident on the bridge, on May 30, 1883. Although other accidents and events on the bridge make headlines for years to come, the bridge still stands and is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Read more about it!

The information in this guide focuses on primary source materials found in the digitized historic newspapers from the digital collection Chronicling America.

The timeline below highlights important dates related to this topic and a section of this guide provides some suggested search strategies for further research in the collection.