A TREATISE ON BRIDGE ARCHITECTURE; IN WHICH THE SUPERIOR ADVANTAGES OF THE FLYING PENDENT LEVER BRIDGE ARE FULLY PROVED. WITH AN HISTORICAL ACCOUNT AND DESCRIPTION OF DIFFERENT BRIDGES ERECTED IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE WORLD, FROM AN EARLY PERIOD, DOWN TO THE PRESENT TIME. by Pope, Thomas - 1811

New York., 1811. 288pp. Illus., 18 plates, most show some foxing. Modern marbled boards with cloth spine, printed paper label on upper spine. First edition Divided into four parts: Part I: Historical account of the sundry bridges erected in different parts of the world. Part II: Mathematical description of the flying pendent lever bridge as invented by the author. Part III: General remarks on the nature and strength of timber. Part VI: A description of the author's patentt chain bar arc for buildings. Shaw 232721. Sabin 64123. Rink. 2658. Condit: Amerian Building Art pp.86-87. Hitchcock 946. A rare American work on bridge building, which describes Pope's plan for a great "flying pendent lever bridge" over the Hudson River. This is only the second American book on the subject of bridge building, the first being AN ESSAY ON BUILDING WOODEN BRIDGES (1797), by Charles W. Peale. Pope surveys the world's great bridges and includes handsome engravings of the Hampton Court Bridge, Wearmouth-Bridge, the Bridge of the Louvre over the Seine, as well as his proposed bridge over the Hudson. In addition to his architectural pursuits, Pope was an accomplished gardener and shipbuilder. Pope's patented design, although apparently not appreciated in his day, became the basis for the cantilever bridge.