London Bridge, Lake Havasu City, Arizona
Posted by: 
Rose Red
N 34° 28.292 W 114° 20.861
11S E 743605 N 3817633
In 1962, London Bridge was falling down. It was settling into the river and cracks were developing. It could not handle the ever-increasing traffic across the Thames River so it was sold by City of London and moved to Lake Havasu City, Arizona.
Waymark Code: WM1KV5
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 05/28/2007
Views: 150
In 1962, London Bridge was falling down.
The London Bridge was originally a wooden bridge. A stone bridge was completed in 1209 that stood on the site of the earlier wooden bridge. It was the only bridge across the River Thames between 1209 and 1750.
London in the early 1600s sprawled along both banks of the Thames and overflowed onto the old London Bridge. The Great Fire of 1666 destroyed many of the houses and shops that lined the bridge and most of the buildings on the north bank, including Old St. Paul’s Cathedral.
The famous London Bridge was built between 1823 and 1831. The bridge was the last project of engineer John Rennie and completed by his son, also named John Rennie. Built out of Dartmoor Granite, the London Bridge was a structure of five arches, with a length of 928 feet (283 m) and a width of 49 feet (15 m). Dartmoor Granite was quarried all over Dartmoor and was renowned for its crushing strength.
By the mid-20th century, the London Bridge was settling into the river and cracks were developing. It could not handle the ever-increasing traffic across the Thames River so it was sold by the City of London. Robert McCullock, founder of Lake Havasu City, Arizona and chairman of McCulloch Oil Corporation, submitted the winning bid of US2.5 million dollars.
In 1968, London Bridge was disassembled; each stone was numbered and reconstructed for another US$7 million in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, formerly an old mining town. The bridge opened in October 1971. It crosses a narrow 8 ft. (2.4m) deep man-made canal that leads from Lake Havasu (on the Colorado River) to Thompson Bay.
It has been claimed that it was bought in the mistaken belief that it was the more grandiose Tower Bridge (which is often wrongly called London Bridge by tourists), but McCulloch fervently denied that.
The black and white photo from Folger Shakespeare Library: engraving (1616) by Claes Jansz Visscher. Color photos: Lake Havasu City Convention and Visitor Center.
Instructions for logging waymark: A photograph is required of you (or your GPS receiver, if you are waymarking solo) and the London (Lake Havasu City) Bridge.
Ordnance Survey map reference (10 figure) if within DNP – If outside the Park, add N/A: N/A
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Visit Instructions:
A current photo of the way mark would be good but is optional.