Dennis Collins (Mayor of Bayonne), Anthony J. Barber (Acting Director of Tunnels, Bridges and Terminals for the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey), and Michael Salgo (ASCE Treasurer) unveiling the plaque on November 15, 1985.

At the ceremony, Mr. Barber said, "The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey is honored that the Bayonne Bridge is being cited as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by ASCE. This bridge has for 54 years contributed to the development of Staten Island, New York, and Bayonne, New Jersey, and we look forward to many more years of service to the area."

ASCE Director Monahan said, "This bridge was designed by Othmar Ammann, Honorary Member of ASCE and then Chief Engineer of the Port Authority. The ASCE is proud to have its plaque awarded to an engineering feat of this magnitude and beauty." Dedicated on November 14, 1931, the bridge was awarded the prize of "the most beautiful steel arch bridge" by the American Institute for Steel Construction.

William Fleming (New Jersey Section President), Mike Salgo (ASCE Treasurer), and Satoshi Oishi (Met Section President).

At the time the bridge opened to traffic in 1932, its span of 1,675 feet established a new record of magnitude as a steel arch bridge, as it was 70% longer than the previous record (the Hell Gate Bridge, completed in 1917, span of 977.5 feet). In addition to greatly surpassing in length any other steel arch bridge until 1977 (the New River Gorge Bridge in Fayetteville, West Virginia, span of 1,700 feet), two other firsts were introduced in the construction of the Bayonne Bridge. Firstly, manganese steel was introduced for use in the main arch ribs and the rivets. Secondly, the use of falsework for the construction of an arch span approaching this magnitude had never been used.

The Bayonne Bridge represented an advance in the magnitude of arch bridges to be built to date. Requirements in theory, including calculations of secondary stresses were generally ignored, helped to make the construction of such large structures possible. This also enabled such stress calculations and theory to be checked by extensometers on the actual surface.

The erection method for the steel arches was through the use of falsework. This method was chosen over the usual cantilever method for economic reasons. The use of cantilevers would have necessitated the construction of heavy anchorages, towers over the abutments, and ties from the anchorages to various points on the trusses. Using falsework proved to be a better method since the river's solid rock bottom provided a secure foundation and the feasibility of making the falsework out of material which would later be used in the bridge.

Manganese steel was chosen for use in building the Bayonne Bridge due to its high strength, comparable to nickel steel and at a cheaper price. It was used for the main arch ribs and the 1¼ inch rivets. Although manganese steel rivets were harder to drive in the field, their use permitted a 50 percent increase in working unit stresses, thus a savings in the number of field rivets required.

Increased knowledge of theories used in connection with the design of structures of this size was gained through stress measurements by extensometers on the actual structure and compression test of various materials, including manganese steel made on the largest columns ever. These tests gave way to checking the validity of the Bryan formula (3.5Et²)/b² = stress at which buckling will occur, which was used to determine compressive strength of wide web plates.

Charles Fausti (Met Section President-Elect), Michael Salgo (ASCE Treasurer), Allen W. Custen (Ammann & Whitney), Ed Cohen (Ammann & Whitney), Eitan Agai (Met Section Treasurer), Satoshi Oishi (Met Section President), and Robert Olmsted (Met Section History & Heritage Committee Chair).

In its lifetime, the Bayonne Bridge has contributed to the development of Staten Island and Bayonne, New Jersey as it provided an important link between the Bayonne-Jersey City areas and Staten Island. At the time the bridge was built, a ferry service was the only means by which vehicular traffic and pedestrians could cross the Kill Van Kull. This service was inadequate for the demand and with the opening of the Bayonne Bridge came great relief from congestion and delays. Roadway travel distance from Manhattan to Staten Island was reduced nearly 40%, from 18 miles to 11 miles. The Bayonne Bridge also provided the shortest route from northern New Jersey to the Jersey shore. It also acted as a bypass around the heavily industrialized areas along the Arthur Kill in New Jersey.

Following the opening of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge between Staten Island and Brooklyn in 1964, the Bayonne Bridge became an important link in the regional systems of arterial highways. It has direct connections to the Willowbrook Expressway (NY 440) and the Staten Island Expressway (I-278) to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and the Goethals Bridge. Since the completion of the West Shore Expressway, the Bayonne Bridge also connects directly to the Outerbridge Crossing.

In addition to providing an important highway link, the Bayonne Bridge was constructed with a mid-span clearance of 150 feet to provide unobstructed navigation through the Kill Van Kull for the tallest ships of the U.S. Navy. This passageway from the Atlantic Ocean into Newark Bay and the Hackensack and Passaic Rivers beyond, still is the main shipping channel to the inland ports of Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey.