Writing Testbench:The Quebec Bridge Company was formed in 1887 and for the next
thirteen years, very little was done. In 1900, Thomas Cooper, a consultant
in civil engineering specializing in bridge building was
appointed the company’s consulting engineer for the duration of the
work. The Sixth Street bridge in Pittsburgh, the Seekonk bridge in
Providence, and the Second Avenue bridge in New York were
already part of his portfolio.
Conscious of the precarious financial situation of the Quebec
Bridge Company, Cooper recommended the cantilever superstructure
proposed by the Phoenix Bridge Company, of Phoenixville,
Pennsylvania as the best and cheapest of the proposals. He also recommended
that the span of the bridge be increased from 1600 feet
to 1800 feet to minimize the cost of constructing the piers supporting
the bridge. The specifications were also modified to allow for
greater unit stresses in the structure. The Quebec Bridge was to be
the longest cantilever bridge in the world.

\