• Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

Where did the Phrase “If you believe that, I’ve got a bridge I’d like to sell you” Come From?

By Karen Hill

After the Brooklyn Bridge was built in 1883, a young con man named George Parker approached the gullible as its owner, and after explaining the fortune to be made through toll booths, he would sell the bridge for as much as fifty thousand dollars.

Where did the Phrase

Parker went to jail for life, but not before selling the Statue of Liberty, Grant’s Tomb, and Madison Square Garden, and leaving us the expression, “I’ve got a bridge I’d like to sell you.”

George C. Parker was born in 1870, was one of the boldest con men in American history, and is remembered as one of the most successful con men in the history of the United States.

He managed to sell the Brooklyn Bridge twice a week for many years before being caught.

George died in prison in 1936.

Related

  • What Does the Expression "Until the Cows Come Home" Mean and Where Did the Phrase Come From?
  • What Did the Expression "Merry Christmas" Mean Originally and Where Did the Phrase Come From?
  • Where Did the Phrase "Variety Is the Spice of Life" Come From and What Did the Expression Mean Originally?
  • Where does the phrase "to come to the end of one's rope" come from and What does it mean?
  • What does the phrase "come hell or high water" mean and Where does it come from?
  • Where did the phrase "raining cats and dogs" come from?

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Footer

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Accomplishments Animals Culture Finance Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Law Mythology Odds People Plants Religion Science Space The World Universe Your Body

About · Privacy · Contact
Copyright © 2019 Zippy Facts