Clifton Suspension Bridge
Clifton suspension bridge taken from a slip road off Brunel Way.
Carries	Cars, pedestrians and cycles
Crosses	River Avon
Locale	Bristol
Maintained by	Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust
Design	Suspension
Longest span	702 ft (214 m)
Total length	1,352 ft (414 m)
Width	31 ft (9.5m)
Clearance below	245 ft (75 m) above high water level
Opening date	1864
Toll	50 pence
Coordinates	(grid reference ST564730)

Shown within Bristol (above) and England.

The Clifton Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge, spanning the Avon Gorge and linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods in North Somerset, England. Designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, it is a distinctive landmark that is used as a symbol of Bristol. It is a grade I listed building.^[1] The Clifton Suspension Bridge, spanning the Avon Gorge in Bristol. ... The Avon Gorge and Clifton Suspension Bridge The River Avon is a river in the south west of England. ... Clifton Suspension Bridge Bristol (IPA: ) is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, 115 miles (185 km) west of London and between the cities of Bath, Gloucester and Newport. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using latitude or longitude. ... Image File history File links Bristol_ag_csb_map. ... Image File history File links EnglandBristol. ... A suspension bridge is a type of bridge that has been made since ancient times as early as CE 100. ... The Avon Gorge and Clifton Suspension Bridge, looking south from the Downs The Avon Gorge (Grid reference ST560743) is a 2. ... The crowded Princess Victoria Street lies at the heart of Clifton Village Clifton is an inner suburb of the English port city of Bristol. ... Clifton Suspension Bridge Bristol (IPA: ) is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, 115 miles (185 km) west of London and between the cities of Bath, Gloucester and Newport. ... Leigh Woods is a small area of woodland in Bristol. ... North Somerset is a unitary authority in England, historically part of the county of Somerset but now administered independently. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Brunel before the launching of the Great Eastern. ... Originally, a landmark literally meant a geographic feature used by explorers and others to find their way back or through an area. ... Buckingham Palace, a Grade I listed building. ...

In 1885, a 22 year old woman called Sarah Ann Henley survived a fall from the bridge when her billowing skirts acted as a parachute, and subsequently lived into her eighties.^[2] 1885 (MDCCCLXXXV) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... A skirt is a traditionally feminine tube- or cone-shaped garment which is worn from the waist and covers the legs. ... The Apollo 15 capsule landed safely despite a parachute failure. ...

History

The idea of building a bridge across the Avon Gorge originated in 1754, with a bequest in the will of Bristolian merchant William Vick, who left £1,000 invested with instructions that when the interest had accumulated to £10,000, it should be used for the purpose of building a stone bridge between Clifton Down (which was in Gloucestershire, outside the City of Bristol, until the 1830s) and Leigh Woods (then in Somerset). 1754 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Interest is the rent paid to borrow money. ... Categories: Stub | Bristol ... Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ... Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. ...

View from the observatory on Clifton Down

By the 1820s, Vick's bequest was nearing £8,000, but it was estimated that a stone bridge would cost over ten times that amount. An Act of Parliament was passed to allow a wrought-iron suspension bridge to be built instead, and tolls levied to recoup the cost. In 1829, a competition was held to find a design for the bridge; the judge, Thomas Telford, rejected all designs, and tried to insist on a hugely expensive design of his own. A second competition, held with new judges, was won by Brunel's design, for a suspension bridge with fashionably Egyptian-influenced towers. The Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol, England. ... The Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol, England. ... Categories: Stub | Bristol ... Nationalistic independence movements helped reshape the world during this decade: Greece gains independence from the Ottoman Empire in the Greek War of Independence (1821-1827). ... In Westminster System parliaments, an Act of Parliament is a part of the law passed by the Parliament. ... Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1829 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Thomas Telford (August 9, 1757 - September 2, 1834) was born in Westerkirk, Scotland. ...

An attempt to build Brunel's design in 1831 was stopped by the Bristol Riots, which severely dented commercial confidence in Bristol. Work was not started again until 1836, and thereafter the capital from Vick's bequest and subsequent investment proved woefully inadequate. By 1843, the towers had been built in unfinished stone, but funds were exhausted. In 1851, the ironwork was sold and used to build the Brunel-designed Royal Albert Bridge on the railway between Plymouth and Saltash. Leopold I 1831 (MDCCCXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... There have been a number of significant riots in the city of Bristol in England. ... Year 1836 (MDCCCXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... 1843 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1851 (MDCCCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... {{, Brunel truss bridge, and lenticular truss The Royal Albert bridge in 1859 The Royal Albert bridge seen from Saltash railway station Royal Albert Bridge seen from the Tamar Bridge. ... Plymouth is a city of 243,795 inhabitants (2001 census) in the south-west of England, or alternatively the West Country, and is situated within the traditional county of Devon at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar and at the head of one of the worlds largest... Location within the British Isles Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town in Cornwall, UK. It has a population of about 16,000. ...

Brunel died in 1859, without seeing the completion of the bridge. Brunel's colleagues in the Institution of Civil Engineers felt that completion of the Bridge would be a fitting memorial, and started to raise new funds. In 1860, Brunel's Hungerford suspension bridge, over the Thames in London, was demolished to make way for a new railway bridge to Charing Cross railway station, and its chains were purchased for use at Clifton. A slightly revised design was made by William Henry Barlow and Sir John Hawkshaw; it has a wider, higher and sturdier deck than Brunel intended, triple chains instead of double, and the towers were left as rough stone rather than being finished in Egyptian style. Work on the bridge was restarted in 1862, and was complete by 1864. 1859 (MDCCCLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar). ... The Institutions headquarters Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineers. ... 1860 is the leap year starting on Sunday. ... Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges, seen from the north The Hungerford Bridge runs over the River Thames in London, between Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge. ... The Thames (pronounced //) is a river flowing through southern England, in its lower reaches flowing through London into the sea. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Charing Cross Charing Cross railway station is a central London railway terminus. ... William Henry Barlow (1812-1902) was an English civil engineer of the 19th century, particularly associated with railway engineering projects. ... Sir John Hawkshaw (1811 - June 2, 1891), English engineer, was born in Yorkshire, and was educated at Leeds grammar school. ... 1862 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1864 (MDCCCLXIV) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ...

When it was opened the bridge was the longest suspension bridge of its day. The bridge is now managed by a trust set up by Act of Parliament in 1952. Tolls are levied on vehicles but no longer on cyclists or pedestrians. The bridge is usually illuminated at night, with an LED-based array switched on for the first time on 8 April 2006, to an accompaniment of fireworks and festivities. This was timed to coincide with the bicentenary of Brunel's birth. 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Paying toll on passing a bridge. ... A cyclist is a person who engages in cycling whether as a sport or rides a bicycle for recreation or transportation. ... Look up Pedestrian in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... External links LEd Category: TeX ... April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Two hundred year anniversary. ...

On 26 November 2003, the last ever Concorde flight (Concorde 216) flew over the bridge before landing at Filton Airfield. It was a symbolic moment which commemorated Bristol's feats in engineering. November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... British Airways Concorde G-BOAB. Concorde G-BOAD on a barge beneath Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York City in November 2003, bound for the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. ... Bristol Filton Aerodrome (EGTG) lies on the A38 on the border between Filton and Patchway, within South Gloucestershire, north of Bristol in the United Kingdom. ...

The plaque on the bridge

In 2002 it was discovered that the large red sandstone abutment on the Leigh Woods side is not (as had been thought) solid stone, but has twelve vaulted chambers up to 35 ft (11 m) high within it. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 504 pixel Image in higher resolution (3077 × 1937 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 504 pixel Image in higher resolution (3077 × 1937 pixel, file size: 1. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... Red sandstone interior of Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona, worn smooth due to erosion by flash flooding over millions of years Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock grains. ...

In 2003 the weight of crowds travelling to and from the Ashton Court festival and Bristol International Balloon Fiesta put such great strain on the bridge that it was decided to close the bridge to all traffic, including pedestrians, during the whole of the Ashton Court Festival and part of the Balloon Fiesta in 2004. This arrangement has continued since. The Ashton Court festival is an outdoors music festival held annually in the grounds of Ashton Court, just outside Bristol, in mid July. ... Early morning mass ascent The Bristol International Balloon Fiesta is held during August in Bristol, United Kingdom. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Dimensions

• Span: 702 ft (214 m)
• Height of towers: 86 ft (26 m)
• Clearance: 245 ft (75 m) above high water level
• Traffic: Four million vehicles per year

References

1. ^ Clifton Suspension Bridge. Images of England. Retrieved on 2006-05-09.
2. ^ www.clifton-suspension-bridge.org.uk Is it true that a Victorian lady survived a fall from the Bridge?

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... May 9 is the 129th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (130th in leap years). ...

External links

• Official website
• 'Brunel 200 Weekend' provided by BBC Bristol
• Photographs.

• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 51.455° -2.62776°
  • Satellite image from WikiMapia or Google Maps
  • Street map from Multimap or GlobalGuide
  • Aerial image from TerraServer