Seán Heuston Bridge

Seán Heuston Bridge
Droichead Seán Heuston

Seán Heuston Bridge seen from Frank Sherwin Bridge
Coordinates 53°20′51″N 6°17′31″W / 53.3474°N 6.2919°W / 53.3474; -6.2919Coordinates: 53°20′51″N 6°17′31″W / 53.3474°N 6.2919°W / 53.3474; -6.2919
Carries Luas, pedestrians
Crosses River Liffey
Locale Dublin
Other name(s) King's Bridge (1828-1923), Sarsfield Bridge (1923-41)
Characteristics
Material Cast-iron
Total length ~30m[1]
Width ~9m
Number of spans 1
History
Designer George Papworth
Construction begin December 1827
Construction end 1828
Luas tram crossing Heuston Bridge from Wolfetone Avenue towards Heuston station

Seán Heuston Bridge (Irish: Droichead Seán Heuston)[2] is a cast iron bridge spanning the River Liffey beside Heuston Station, Dublin.[3] It was previously named King's Bridge and Sarsfield Bridge - and the bridge and adjacent train station are still commonly referred to by older Dubliners as "Kings Bridge" and "Kings Bridge Station" respectively.

History

Origins

Originally designed by George Papworth[4] to carry horsedrawn traffic, the foundation stone was laid on 12 December 1827. The iron castings for the bridge were produced at the Royal Phoenix Iron Works in nearby Parkgate Street.[5] (The foundry which also produced the parapets for the upstream Lucan Bridge). Construction completed in 1828, and the bridge was opened with the name Kings Bridge to commemorate a visit by King George IV in 1821.[1]

The bridge has an overall width of just under 9 meters.[5]

Renamings

Naming plaque - Seán Heuston Bridge

In 1923 the bridge was renamed as Sarsfield Bridge after Patrick Sarsfield, and in 1941 it was again renamed as the Seán Heuston Bridge for Seán Heuston, who was executed for his part in the 1916 Easter Rising.[1]

Luas

It was restored in 2003 and now carries Luas tram traffic on the red line.[6]

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, March 11, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.