Old London Bridge

Abstract

THE Exhibition commemorating the centenary of the demolition of old London Bridge, which was opened on Nov. 5 in Regis House, close to the northern end of London Bridge, is to remain open until Jan. 24. The display has been organised by the Rev. H. J. Fynes-Clinton, rector of St. Magnus the Martyr, to raise funds for the restoration of Wren's tower and spire, and many societies and individuals have sent exhibits to it. The series of engravings, water-colours, and prints of the old bridge at various periods of its existence, with and without the houses upon it, and with the new bridge being erected close to it, are of very great interest to students of the history of London, while the two splendid models by Mr. J. B. Thorp are alone worth the trouble of a journey to the spot. The first of these is a 25-ft. model of the old bridge as it was about thirty years before the Great Fire. At the Southwark end are the water-wheels for corn grinding, while at the City end are the water-wheels erected in 1582 by the Dutchman, Peter Morice, for working the pumps which supplied water from the river to certain parts of the City. Mr. Thorp's other large model shows a London street with the Lord Mayor's show passing along it in 1616. Lectures are given on these models at short intervals. While these exhibits are perhaps of general interest, there are others which will appeal to the historian, the antiquary, and the engineer.