"The Original East River Bridge. Crossing On The Ice In 1852."

Long before the Brooklyn Bridge was built the East River froze so thickly that people used it as a bridge to travel from Brooklyn to Manhattan. Children must have had a grand time skating and sliding on its hard surface. Skating was a popular amusement in Brooklyn for adults and children. There were numerous skating ponds such as the Capitoline, the Union Pond and the Brooklyn Skating Hall where one could take skating lessons and skate to music under gas light. Read some of the advertisements for this popular amusement in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle: "Grand Opening of the Skating Carnival" (December 10, 1863).

The caption under this image reads: "The Original East River Bridge. Crossing On The Ice In 1852."

Citation - Document 6
The Eagle and Brooklyn, Vol. 1
Winter 1852
Brooklyn Public Library – Brooklyn Collection
www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/civilwar