James Buchanan Eads, Inventor (1820-1887)

The Eads Bridge, completed in 1874, was the engineering feat of the century and the first bridge of steel construction to span the Mississippi River, linking east and west. This National Monument was but one of the accomplishments of this illustrious engineer.  During the Civil War, he built the ironclad gunboats at the iron foundries in Carondelet.  General Grant could not have accomplished the siege of Vicksburg without the help of Ead’s boats. He also built a diving bell for salvaging boats submerged in the rivers.