I know the inspiration for the phrase. Con men in New York in the early 20th century would “sell” the bridge (as well as other landmarks like Grant’s Tomb) to naive, newly arrived immigrants.
But what is the actual first use of the phrase (or one close to it)? I don’t seriously expect that someone will know the literal first use, but I can’t seem to find any example of it before the last couple of decades. Does anybody know what the earliest known use of this phrase was? Or at least an example that appeared before about 1994?
I ask because I ran into a guy who claims he coined the phrase while writing an article for an amateur magazine back in the '90’s. Needless to say, I’m a mite suspicious.
I recall seeing it used in a Warner Brothers Bugs Bunny cartoon. I saw the cartoon as a kid in the early 1960s. The cartoon probably dated from the early 1950s. And WB wouldn’t have used the cliché unless it was already a cliché.
Meanwhile, “a bridge to sell you” and “got a bridge to” seem to start showing up around 1983-1985. That corresponds with the Milwaukee Journal article above. So my first order guess would be the phrase as such starts showing up in the early 80s and gaining popularity from there. I wonder if samclem might have more info.
“Selling the bridge” has a long history in New York. Supposedly going back to the time when some Indians that were just passing through “sold” Manhattan to the Dutch.
There just must be something about the area that makes the scam profitable.
That’s just my first attempt, and notice the writer says–“As the saying goes,” so she wasn’t claiming authorship, but rather that it was common and well known.
I’ll do more later.
Tell your friend that if anyone believes his story, you’ve got a bridge you’d like to sell them.
