From the first timber spans to the great railway viaducts, the story of bridges is the story of modern civilisation. Bridges quietly shape the world. In History of Bridge Engineering, Henry Grattan Tyrrell brings a practising engineer's eye and a historian's sense of drama to the evolution of bridge design, tracing how new materials, mathematics and methods transformed simple crossings into feats of structural art. Clear, orderly chapters read at once as a civil engineering textbook and as an accessible structural engineering history book, guiding readers through the structural analysis of bridges, changing theories of safety, and the rise of steel and concrete bridges. Drawing on notable examples from nineteenth century bridge construction and the wider industrial age infrastructure history, Tyrrell explains how engineers learned from success and failure to refine trusses, arches, suspension systems and cantilevers. The result is a bridge engineering reference and enduring reference for civil engineers, bridge designers and students seeking solid grounding in the history of civil engineering as well as its practical foundations. Technical enough for the practising engineer yet engaging for the curious general reader, it rewards close study and casual browsing alike. First issued in the early twentieth century, this classic structural engineering text captures a pivotal moment when scientific analysis, new materials and expanding transport networks reshaped the built environment. Out of print for decades and now republished by Alpha Editions. Restored for today's and future generations. More than a reprint -- a collector's item and a cultural treasure.