1879 Keppler Satirical View of the Brooklyn Bridge under Construction

Was Puck Empfiehlt.

This is a curious c. 1879 Joseph Keppler satirical broadside, issued for Puck, lampooning the state of construction on the Brooklyn Bridge, which had begun nearly a decade earlier. The bridge project, during its long construction, suffered numerous setbacks and was only accomplished thanks to the herculean efforts of the Roebling engineering family, which led the project, and the many workers who toiled to bring the bridge to completion.

A Closer Look

The view looks towards Manhattan from the direction of Brooklyn, displaying the two suspension towers of the bridge and intervening cables, and little else. Keppler lampoons the cables being repurposed for hanging advertisements. All manner of goods are promoted, from foodstuffs to champagne, beer, and furniture. Most of the advertisements are for companies founded by Germans (including Steinway and Sons Pianos), something Keppler pokes fun at with a man in a small boat in the foreground holding a sign reading 'was puck empfiehlt' (what puck recommends). Indeed, in addition to satirizing the state of the bridge's construction and the glut of advertising in public spaces in New York, this is also itself a very clever advertising piece for the companies listed.

The Brooklyn Bridge

When it opened in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge stood as a marvel of engineering and a symbol of urban progress. Spanning the East River and connecting the cities of New York (Manhattan) and Brooklyn, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of 1,595 feet. Designed by John A. Roebling and completed by his son, Washington Roebling, the bridge showcased cutting-edge techniques, including the use of steel-wire cables and massive stone towers. On its opening day, May 24, 1883, the bridge was celebrated with great fanfare, with thousands of pedestrians and vehicles crossing it, underscoring its importance as a vital transportation link and an architectural icon.

However, this signal achievement only came after years of frustration, cost overruns, and delays, perhaps inevitable with such a groundbreaking piece of engineering. What was originally projected to take five years and cost $5 million ended up taking nearly triple that time and costing more than $15 million. Initially planned as a private endeavor by the New York Bridge Company, the project quickly became a vehicle for rampant corruption by 'Boss' Tweed and Tammany Hall. As a result, the cities of New York and Brooklyn (then separate cities) took over the project in 1875, shifting the financial burden onto taxpayers, which led to frequent political scrutiny and funding freezes that halted work for months at a time.

Engineering challenges also slowed down construction, particularly the building of the huge, airtight wooden caissons used to construct the stone towers from which the bridge would suspend. Workers had to breathe compressed air and easily developed the 'bends' when submerging, leading to many injuries and some deaths; Washington Roebling was himself paralyzed for life in 1870 as a result of this phenomenon. The work was highly dangerous in other respects as well; several dozen workers died from falls, accidents, and other mishaps, as did John A. Roebling, who died from tetanus after an accident at the bridge site.

More problematic from an engineering standpoint, in 1877, it was discovered that J. Lloyd Haigh, the contractor responsible for supplying the steel wire for the bridge's cables, had been shipping rejected, inferior-grade wire to the bridge site. By the time this was discovered, miles of bad wire were already woven into the cables, which would take years to dismantle. Instead, Roebling determined that the bridge could hold the necessary weight if additional high-quality wire was added to supplement the inferior cables, but this also added time and costs. Other problems arose along the way, including a huge fire in one of the caissons that set back work by months. But thanks to the efforts of Washington Roebling, his wife Emily Warren Roebling (who took over much of the management of the project once her husband was injured), and the many workers on the project, the bridge was finally completed and opened in 1883. Emily Warren Roebling was the first to cross it, followed by U.S. President Chester A. Arthur and New York Mayor Franklin Edson.

Chromolithography

Chromolithography, sometimes called oleography, is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process uses multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Generally, a chromolithograph begins with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors are layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired effect. Chromolithograph color can be blended for even more dramatic results. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when it emerged as the dominant method of color printing. The vivid color chromolithography made it exceptionally effective for advertising and propaganda.

Publication History and Census

This view was prepared by Joseph Keppler and printed by Mayer, Merkel, and Ottmann, most likely for Puck. It is undated, but from the state of the bridge, it is most likely that it was published in the late 1870s, while an advert at the top-left for G.H. Mumm and Company Champagne mentions the amount imported for 1875, suggesting a slightly earlier date. This view is only independently cataloged at Williams College and is scarce to the market.

Cartographers

Joseph Ferdinand Keppler (February 1, 1838 - February 19, 1894) was an immensely influential Austrian-born American caricaturist and cartoonist. Born in Vienna, Keppler studied art at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and contributed work to the Vienna-based comedy magazine Kikeriki. As he was unable to support himself only with his art, Keppler joined a theatrical troupe and acted as its scene painter and then as a comedian. He earned some extra money as the troupe traveled through the Tyrol and Italy by restoring old paintings in monasteries. He married Viennese actress Minna Rubens in 1864 and he and his wife soon emigrated to the United States to join Keppler's father, who had emigrated to the United States to escape the Revolutions of 1848 and was the proprietor of a general store in northern Missouri. By 1867, Keppler and his wife had settled in St. Louis, where Keppler was working as an actor. He helped start the German-American cartoon weekly Die Vehme in 1869. Die Vehme survived for a year, and was followed by Frank und Frei, which lasted only six months. Keppler founded Puck in St. Louis in March 1871, though this iteration of the magazine only lasted until August 1872. Minna died in 1870, and Keppler married Pauline Pfau in 1871, with whom he had three children. Keppler and his wife moved to New York City in 1872, where he found work in Frank Leslie's publishing house, and Keppler began contributing cartoons to Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper in 1874. Puck was restarted by Keppler and fellow Frank Leslie employee Adolph Schwarzmann in September 1876 for the German-American population in New York, and began printing an English-language edition the following year. Keppler's cartoons, particularly those criticizing President Ulysses S. Grant and his administration, began to generate attention and publicity for the magazine. Keppler's caustic wit and clever adaptations of classical and historical subjects became famous, as did their pioneering use of color lithography. Keppler published a special World's Fair Puck from the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago during the summer of 1893, a strain that took a terrible toll on his health, and contributed to his death the following year in New York.   Further Details...

Mayer, Merkel and Ottmann (1869 - 1901) was a New York City based lithography firm founded in New York by the German immigrants Vincent Mayer and August Merkel. Merkel and Mayer initially worked under 'Ferdinand Mayer and Company', before founding their own publishing partnership in 1869 as 'Mayer and Markel.' The Prussian immigrant Jacob Ottmann (1849 - 1890) joined the firm shortly thereafter and, when he had built up enough equity, became a partner. The firm officially changed to 'Mayer, Merkel and Ottmann' in 1874. The concern specialized in highly graphic color printed trade cards, and, by the 1800s, were a major American lithographic firm. Mayer and Merkel retired in 1885, leaving the firm to Ottmann, who renamed it 'J. Ottmann Lithographic' and in 1886 relocated to the Puck Building at 39 E. Houston Street. Around this time, he began to publish the weekly magazine Puck, known for graphically intense and witty political satire. After Ottmann's death in 1890, the firm was taken over by his son, William Ottmann, who shunted day to day management to Frank A. Bloom (1855 - 1901). Bloom ran the firm until his death in 1901, when it was acquired and became part of the United States Printing and Lithographing Company.   Further Details...

Condition

Good. Some verso reinforcement to old fold splits. Small area of reinstatement along the border, top center.

References

OCLC 1037562519.