Othmar Ammann was a Swiss-born civil engineer, born in 1879 and died in 1965, who emigrated to the United States in 1904 and became a naturalized citizen in 1924, working for most of his career on New York City's major bridges. He designed the George Washington Bridge, completed in 1931, and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, opened in 1964 as the longest suspended span in the world at the time at 4,260 feet, along with the Bayonne Bridge, the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge and the Throgs Neck Bridge. He gained early recognition for a report on the 1907 Quebec Bridge collapse, and his design approach favored bridges that were light and comparatively inexpensive while remaining structurally simple.
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1. Othmar Ammann (Wikipedia)
Wikipedialead sentence, Wikipedia article "Othmar Ammann"
was a Swiss-American civil engineer whose bridge designs include the George Washington Bridge, Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, and Bayonne Bridge.
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "Othmar Ammann" (birth date)
March 26, 1879, September 22, 1965
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "Othmar Ammann" (birth year)
March 26, 1879, September 22, 1965
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "Othmar Ammann" (death date)
March 26, 1879, September 22, 1965
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "Othmar Ammann" (death year)
March 26, 1879, September 22, 1965
View the Source Frequently Asked Questions
What made Othmar Ammann's bridge designs different from other long-span bridges?
He favored light, comparatively inexpensive bridges that stayed structurally simple.
Ammann favored bridges that were light and comparatively inexpensive while remaining structurally simple. He applied that approach to New York City's major bridges, including the George Washington Bridge, completed in 1931, and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, opened in 1964 as the longest suspended span in the world at the time at 4,260 feet. His early recognition came from a report on the 1907 Quebec Bridge collapse.
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