3 July: Chiswick Bridge

Chiswick Bridge opened on this date in 1933. 10 things you might not know about Chiswick Bridge:

1. The bridge is made from reinforced concrete and is faced with 3,400 tons of Portland stone.
2. It is 606 feet (185 m) long and 70 feet (21 m) wide.
3. It has five spans, but only three of them are over the river. The two at either end of the bridge are shorter and cover the former towpaths. When the bridge was first built, the centre span was the longest concrete span over the Thames at 150-foot (46 m).
4. The designers were architect Sir Herbert Baker and engineer Alfred Dryland, who took advice from Considère Constructions, at the time Britain's leading specialist in reinforced concrete construction.
5. In the 17th century, there was a ferry where the bridge is now, which linked the small villages of Chiswick and Mortlake. Because they were small villages, it was never deemed worth building a bridge there.
6. Things changed however, with the arrival of railways, the London Underground and car ownership, making commuting into London from Chiswick and Mortlake more practical and affordable. The population in the area grew rapidly and by 1928, a new road, the A316, was given Royal Assent. The road would cross the river in two places, Chiswick and Twickenham, so bridges were needed in those two places.
7. The bridge was built by the Cleveland Bridge and Engineering Company at a cost of £208,284 (about £14,524,000 in today's money).
8. Chiswick Bridge was opened by Edward, Prince of Wales on 3 July 1933, and at the same time, the ferry service closed forever.
9. The name of the bridge, Chiswick, comes from the Old English for "Cheese farm".
10. The bridge's biggest claim to fame is that it is 370 feet (110 m) away from the end of the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. The end of the course is marked by a University Boat Race Stone on the south bank, and a brightly painted Blue and Black marker post near the north bank.

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