In the
Cincinnati area, the Roebling Suspension Bridge is known simply as 'The Suspension Bridge,' and indeed it stands out as such, the other six or so spans across the
Ohio River in the area being mostly relatively boring and shabby cantilever structures. It was the second major
suspension bridge built in
America, after a span on the Delaware Aqueduct.
The bridge was completed during the Civil War and was built to handle horse traffic. Today after 140 years of handling streetcars and then automobiles, it is still in fine shape. The roadway is not paved, but is rather a metal grid that 'sings' as cars drive over it. The bridge is currently painted a deep blue, and the towers are topped by golden flying pig statues, commemorating the era when Cincinnati was a meat packing town known as 'Porkopolis.'
Washington Roebling went on to design and build the Brooklyn Bridge.