author
William C. Kingsley
A key force behind the creation of the Brooklyn Bridge, he left a small but memorable mark in print through the bridge’s opening ceremonies. His story links engineering ambition, New York politics, and one of the city’s most famous landmarks.
1 Audiobook
Opening Ceremonies of the New York and Brooklyn Bridge, May 24, 1883
by William C. Kingsley, Franklin Edson, Seth Low
About the author
Born in 1833, William C. Kingsley was an American construction contractor and businessman best known for helping drive the creation of the Brooklyn Bridge. He became one of the project’s most important early backers and was closely involved in turning the idea of a bridge between Brooklyn and Manhattan into a reality.
Although he is remembered mainly for his work in construction and public life rather than for a long writing career, his name appears in book catalogs and bookseller listings as the author of Opening Ceremonies of the New York and Brooklyn Bridge, May 24, 1883. That makes him part of the historical record not only as a builder, but also as a voice connected to one of nineteenth-century New York’s great civic moments.
Kingsley died in 1885. For listeners interested in history, his work offers a glimpse of the people behind a landmark that still defines New York City.