Opening a fascinating window on a country's bygone days, Portraits of America celebrates the personalities and the politics, the lofty principles and back-room deals that lie behind some of our nation's best loved landmarks. The first six titles in this brand-new series celebrate the enduring magic and architectural majesty of New York City. Featuring more than 100 vintage black-and-white photographs, this meticulously researched collection created by the Museum of the City of New York details the conception, creation and powerful social impact of New York's great icons. From the bridges to the parks, the skyscrapers to the statues, they all helped transform the "Big Apple" into the undisputed "Capital of the World."   It's sometimes easy to forget that Manhattan is, after all, an island, and that water is as much a part of New York as concrete and steel. What links Manhattan with Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island and New Jersey are hundreds of bridges; some of stone, some iron or gleaming steel, and all vital for tying together the people and places of the city. Through words and pictures, the histories of New York's bridges are traced from early pedestrian and wagon crossings to such engineering marvels as the Brooklyn and George Washington Bridges, along with profiles of the bridge builders, including the famous Roebling family and the prolific O.H. Ammann, designer of the George Washington, Verrazano Narrows, and other major New York bridges.