Ever wonder what it was like to ride over the Brooklyn Bridge in the 19th century? Jason Kottke pointed us to this early Edison video, taken from the front of a B.M.T. train traveling from Brooklyn to Manhattan in 1899. We’re not sure whether the shaky image has more to do with the camera or the vehicle, but one thing is clear: the simple crossing was a hell of a lot more exciting (and apparently scarier, too) a hundred years ago than it is now.
For more vintage New York videos, check out the rest of TigerRocket’s YouTube channel.