Elgin Bridge (Singapore)

Elgin Bridge

The Elgin Bridge is an arched vehicle bridge over the Singapore River in Singapore . It crosses the river between North Bridge Road and South Bridge Road on the border of the Downtown Core and Outram planning areas . The current bridge is from 1929 and it was named after the Governor General of India , Lord Elgin .

history

The bridge has an eventful history, both in terms of the name and the material used. From early records it can be concluded that where the Elgin Bridge is today, there used to be a simple wooden walkway, not yet a bridge, over the Singapore River. This jetty was built around 1819, had no name and was replaced in 1822.

Today's bridge is the fourth to be built on the same spot:

• In 1822 the first bridge over the Singapore River was built on the same site. It was a wooden bridge constructed by Colonel Philip Jackson. It was the only crossing over the river until 1840, when the Coleman Bridge opened. The bridge was called the Presentment Bridge , also known as Jackson Bridge and Monkey Bridge .
• After some repairs between 1827 and 1842, it was demolished and replaced by another bridge, also made of wood. It was named after its builder, JT Thomson, Thomson Bridge . It was expanded in 1845 and 1870.
• In 1862 the construction of an iron bridge, designed by George Lyon, was imported from Calcutta . It was named after Lord Elgin. In 1886 it was expanded and strengthened to be able to carry trams.
• This bridge was dismantled on December 23, 1926 and January 1927 to make way for a new bridge. The steel frame from Glasgow was given a concrete coating designed by TC Hood. It was set on six caissons sunk in the river bed, it consists of three arches with hanging columns. The bridge had two lanes of 7.5 meters each and a pedestrian walkway of around 1.5 meters on each side. The bridge was completed on October 1928 and officially opened on May 30, 1929; it kept the name Elgin Bridge.

Other names for the Elgin Bridge are the Chinese names 铁 吊桥 "thih tiau kio" (in Hokkien ) and "thit tiu khiu" (Cantonese); both means "iron suspension bridge", also 水仙 门 吊桥 头 "chui sien mng tiau kio thau" for suspension bridge at Shuixian Gate, as the locals called the area: Water Fairy Gate.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Elgin Bridge , keyword in Wan Meng Hao and Jacqueline Lau: Heritage Places of Singapore , chapter West Bank, Marshall Cavendish International (Asia) Private Ltd., Singapore 2009, ISBN 978-981-261-858-0 , page 13 , Online edition at: books.google.de / ...
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Vernon Cornelius-Takahama: Elgin Bridge , in: Infopedia, Server of the National Library Board, Singapore Government, online at: eresources.nlb.gov.sg / ...
3. ↑ ^{a b} Bridges of Singapore River , private website "Singapore Lost & Filed", introduction and section Elgin Bridge , online at: lostnfiledsg.wordpress.com / ...
4. ^ ^{A b} Victor R Savage, Brenda Yeoh: Singapore Street Names: A Study of Toponymics , Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd, Singapore 2013, ISBN 978-981-4408-35-6 , keyword Elgin Bridge, pages 110f. and 299, online at: books.google.de / ...
5. ↑ Lim Tin Seng: Bridging History: Passengers Across Water , Bridges of the Colonial Era , Section Elgin Bridge , in: Biblioasia, Portal of the National Library Board, Singapore Government, online at: nlb.gov.sg/biblioasia / ...

Web links

Commons : Elgin Bridge  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 1 ° 17 ′ 20.6 "  N , 103 ° 50 ′ 57.3"  E