PULTENEY BRIDGE

                  An Old Historic Bridge 

Years ago many European bridges had sidewalks and shops. Today the only bridge in England that still has shops on it is the Pulteney Bridge, built in 1773. It spans the River Avon in Bath, England.

The bridge, designed by Robert Adam is one of only four bridges in the world with shops on both sides across the full span.  It is named after the heiress, Frances Pulteney,  in 1767, who was heiress of  Bathwick, an estate across the river from Bath. Bathwick was a simple village in a rural setting, but Frances's husband  William could see its potential. He made plans to create a new town, which would become a suburb to the historic city of Bath. First he needed a better river crossing than the existing ferry, hence the bridge.

The Pulteney Bridge stood for less than 20 years in the form that Adam created. In 1792 alterations to enlarge the shops marred the elegance of the façades. Floods in 1799 and 1800 damaged the north side of the bridge, which had been constructed with inadequate support. It was rebuilt in a less ambitious version of Adam's design. During the 19th-century shopkeepers altered windows or cantilevered out over the river. The western end pavilion on the south side was demolished in 1903 for road widening and its replacement was not an exact match of the previous one.

I had some spare time so I walked the bridge for a look-see in the shops. Shop personnel were friendly and tried to answer my questions; the web filled in dates.

In 1936 the bridge became a national monument, with plans for the restoration of the original façade. I hope this means the nearly lost custom of old shop bridges will remain for years to come.

PS: The Rialto Bridge in Venice, Italy is one of the other four bridges in the world with shops that I have visited. I missed the one in Florence, Italy and I’m not sure where the fourth bridge is located.

MUST SEE SITES

DON'T MISS THESE SITES

Ha’Penny Bridge

Dublin’s oldest pedestrian bridge crossing the River Liffey falls in the must see category.  A symbol of the city, it was built in 1816 as the Wellington Bridge, but acquired its nickname because of the halfpenny levied on all who crossed the bridge until 1919. It is one of the earliest cast iron bridges of its kind.  A 2001 restoration returned the Victorian Bridge to its original sparkling white. Several bridges cross the river that handle vehicular traffic, but the ha’penny was the only pedestrian bridge across the Liffey until 2000 when the new Millennium Bridge opened. The historic bridge is very pretty and to me much more attractive than the modern Millennium Bridge.

Hungarian Puszta

            At the Puszta horse show outside Budapest Magyar cowboys demonstrated their equestrian skills. The entertainment started with a horse parade, followed by all sorts of exercises that were once practiced for wartime. For example, riders taught their horses to sit or lie down providing a smaller target or protection for the rider during battle. A boy on a small burro provided comical contrast to the magnificent steeds. The highlight of the show was when a cowboy completed a complicated twist to the Hungarian five-horse racing, more commonly known as the "Puszta-fiver". Standing on the rear ends of the back two horses the cowboy controlled eight horses with his reins!  It was amazing.

Munich’s Glockenspiel

We hurried to Maria Square where in the tower of the new City Hall, which looked like a big Gothic church, the glockenspiel plays at 11:00 AM and at noon. We’d missed the 11 AM showing and did not want to miss it again. We joined a large crowd gathered to watch the 10-minute performance.

The figures in the 1908 clock are about six feet tall. The bells ring first, then the figures move around in a circle. It is over when the rooster at the top crows three times. I expected the rooster to come forward when it crowed, but instead it flapped its wings. The bells needed a little tuning, but it was fun to watch anyway.

            I’ve seen and watched several of these old clocks and always admire the workmanship involved and the ‘performance’.

INTERESTING CURIOSITIES

FUN TRIVIA

Pack Horse Bridges

While hiking in England we walked over the 400 year old Slater’s pack-horse bridge. These beautifully arched bridges over becks (small streams) are very narrow. There are many of these quaint 300-400 year-old bridges in good condition still standing in England.

Arched lumber was laid and anchored over the stream. A key stone was placed on the center top, then rocks were laid to the edges. When the wood was removed the rocks locked themselves in place. The pack horse bridges we passed over were very narrow requiring single file so it was hard to imagine a horse dragging a cart ---2 wheels vs. 4 on a wagon--- passing over them. These bridges are so sturdy I wonder if they could even be torn down.

Stile Gate
This is not really a gate, but a built-in mechanism to climb over a stone wall. We climbed over a few of them in England. We were told they were ancient stiles using cantilevered stones as steps. Large stones are left protruding out of the wall to be used as steps. A one shoe-wide hole in the top of the wall is used to place your foot and pivot to climb down the cantilevered stones on the other side to reach the ground. The first time maneuvering these stiles  was a bit of a challenge.

Coffee Shops and Cafés
In Amsterdam, Holland you might like to know that a coffee house and a café are not the same thing. You drink coffee in a café. You can legally buy up to 5 grams of pot in a coffee shop/house, but not drink coffee there.

A Bar
In Italy a bar is a sidewalk sandwich shop. One stands at a small round table, often surrounding a support pole, to eat a sandwich. By the way Italy seems to be totally unaware that we like condiments on our sandwiches. A piece of bread, slice of cheese and meat just needs a bit more to taste really good. Individual packets of mustard, ketchup, mayo and relish go with me on my next trip to Italy!

In the old ancient walled city of York, England, a bar is a gate and a gate is a bar. How’s that for confusing when seeking directions?