The Wheeling Suspension Bridge: Charles Ellet -vs- John Roebling

In the 19^th century, the National Road reached from Cumberland, Maryland to Wheeling but was hindered by the wide Ohio River. That problem languished for over three decades before leaders took the situation into hand. They invited the nation’s two leading engineers to compete for the task of designing a landmark bridge, but fate managed to make them both a part of its final design. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is the structure that set off the race for the nation’s biggest, longest, and highest bridges for which our country is known.