Blackfriars Bridge

a bridge across the Thames, London. The structure is built of iron. The bridge consists of five iron arches resting on granite piers. The central arch has a span of 185 feet. The bridge is 1,272 feet long and 80 feet broad. It was completed in 1869 at a cost of $1,600,000. Blackfriars commands a magnificent view of the shipping in the Thames. The dome of St. Paul's is seen to best advantage here. The present bridge occupies the site of an older bridge, known by the same name. The first Blackfriars Bridge was a stone structure. It was begun in 1760, and was finished in 1769. It cost $1,500,000. It was 995 feet long, 42 feet wide, and 62 feet above the water with a central span of 100 feet. About 1864 the stone pillars suddenly began to give way, rendering the bridge unsafe, and it was torn down. The diminished length of the new bridge may be accounted for in part by the building of Victoria Embankment. The northern end of the new bridge terminates at a massive stone wall. The space between this wall and the old river bank has been filled in with earth, and converted into solid land.