When you visit England, there are just some places that you need to see. Westminster Abbey, Parliament, St. Paul's Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, Oxford, Bath, Portmeirion, Minster at York, The Llandoger Trow, and all of Scotland! But to me, there are some places that you miss out on, simply because they are utilitarian and not an actual "tourist attraction".
The bridge at Bristol, England is much in that category, yet so filled with history.
The Clifton Suspension Bridge was built in
Here's a snippet from their site: ..."In 1754 William Vick, a wealthy Bristol wine merchant left money to
fund the erection of a stone bridge across the Avon Gorge at Clifton.
Realising that cost of building a stone bridge would be exorbitantly
high, the bridge committee petitioned parliament for permission to
change Vick’s bequest. This allowed for the completion of an iron
suspension bridge and for the collection of tolls to fund its upkeep and
maintenance.
A competition was launched to find an engineer to design the bridge. Following a second competition Brunel was initially awarded second place but was able to convince the committee to award him the commission on 16th March 1831.
Brunel wrote to his brother-in-law stating: "I have to say that of all the wonderful feats I have performed since I have been in this part of the world, I think yesterday I performed the most wonderful. I produced unanimity amongst fifteen men who were quarrelling about the most ticklish subject – taste."
Though the piers were completed in 1840 by 1843 all available funds had been exhausted and Brunel was ordered to cease all works on the project. Brunel died on the 15th September of that same year. In response to his death, a company was formed and a sum of £35,000 raised to complete the bridge in his memory. Engineers William Henry Barlow and Sir John Hawkshaw were employed to finish the bridge at Clifton to a revised design which eliminated many of Brunel’s proposed ‘Egyptian’ elements. The bridge was finally completed in 1864."...
For a bridge to be built so long ago, and with such technology that we deem to be ancient, this is a magnificent bridge. It is used daily as a commute across the gorge, and attracts thousands of sight seekers and photographers.
If I may suggest, see the bridge in the day and the evening. When we went in the daytime, there were a lot of people and cars, it was hard to get good pictures, but in the evening it was quieter and not so much foot traffic. Some of these pictures were taken at around 11 pm. Still light enough to take photos, but late enough to be out of traffic.
The bridge at Bristol, England is much in that category, yet so filled with history.
The Clifton Suspension Bridge was built in
Here's a snippet from their site: ..."In 1754 William Vick, a wealthy Bristol wine merchant left money to
fund the erection of a stone bridge across the Avon Gorge at Clifton.
Realising that cost of building a stone bridge would be exorbitantly
high, the bridge committee petitioned parliament for permission to
change Vick’s bequest. This allowed for the completion of an iron
suspension bridge and for the collection of tolls to fund its upkeep and
maintenance.
A competition was launched to find an engineer to design the bridge. Following a second competition Brunel was initially awarded second place but was able to convince the committee to award him the commission on 16th March 1831.
Brunel wrote to his brother-in-law stating: "I have to say that of all the wonderful feats I have performed since I have been in this part of the world, I think yesterday I performed the most wonderful. I produced unanimity amongst fifteen men who were quarrelling about the most ticklish subject – taste."
Though the piers were completed in 1840 by 1843 all available funds had been exhausted and Brunel was ordered to cease all works on the project. Brunel died on the 15th September of that same year. In response to his death, a company was formed and a sum of £35,000 raised to complete the bridge in his memory. Engineers William Henry Barlow and Sir John Hawkshaw were employed to finish the bridge at Clifton to a revised design which eliminated many of Brunel’s proposed ‘Egyptian’ elements. The bridge was finally completed in 1864."...
If I may suggest, see the bridge in the day and the evening. When we went in the daytime, there were a lot of people and cars, it was hard to get good pictures, but in the evening it was quieter and not so much foot traffic. Some of these pictures were taken at around 11 pm. Still light enough to take photos, but late enough to be out of traffic.
