View source for Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge

{{short description|Bridge in the Falkland Islands}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
{{Infobox bridge
| name                = Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge
| image               =
| image_upright       =
| alt                 =
| caption             = Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge during construction in 1925
| coordinates         = {{coord|-51.8538|-59.0175|type:landmark_region:FK|display=title,inline}}
| os_grid_reference   =
| qid                 =
| refs                =
| carries             = Sheep and other pedestrians
| crosses             = [[Bodie Creek]]
| locale              = [[Lafonia]]
| owner               =
| maint               =
| heritage            =
| id                  =
| id_type             =
| website             = {{URL|bodiecreekbridge.com}}
| preceded            =
| followed            =
| design              = Suspension
| material            = Steel frame and cables; wood deck
| material1           =
| material2           = Stone
| length              = {{convert|400|ft|m}}
| width               = {{convert|8|ft|m}}
| height              =
| traversable         =
| mainspan            =
| number_spans        = 1
| load                =
| clearance_above     =
| clearance_below     =
| lanes               =
| life                =
| architect           =
| designer            =
| contracted_designer =
| engineering         = Charles P. Peters
| builder             = [[Falkland Islands Company]]
| fabricator          = [[David Rowell & Co.]] (London, England)
| begin               = {{Start date|1924|10}}
| complete            = {{End date|1925|7}}
| cost                =
| open                = {{Start date and age|1925|10}}
| inaugurated         =
| rebuilt             =
| collapsed           =
| closed              = {{end date and age|1997|3}}
| replaces            =
| replaced_by         =
| traffic             =
| mapframe            =
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}}
The '''Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge''' in the [[Falkland Islands]] is one of the southernmost [[suspension bridge]]s in the world. It was built in 1925, from a kit fabricated in England by [[David Rowell & Co.]], in order to shorten the distance sheep needed to be driven from southern [[Lafonia]] to the shearing sheds in [[Goose Green]].
== Background ==
A bridge across [[Bodie Creek]] was first proposed in 1922 as part of an effort to centralise the [[Falkland Islands Company]] (FIC) Lafonia sheep farming operations at Goose Green which consolidated the shearing of flocks from nearby farms including [[Darwin, Falkland Islands|Darwin]] and [[Walker Creek, Falkland Islands|Walker Creek]].<ref name=museum/>  A bridge was required to allow the sheep raised at Walker Creek to be herded to Goose Green, avoiding a lengthy and arduous detour around Bodie Creek, an inlet of [[Choiseul Sound]].<ref name=wag/><ref name=museum/>  The FIC approved the proposals at a meeting on 31 March 1924.<ref name=museum>{{cite web |title=Bodie Creek Bridge |url=http://www.falklands-museum.com/bodie-creek-bridge.html |website=Falkland Islands Museum & National Trust |accessdate=5 June 2020 |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191023173037/http://www.falklands-museum.com/bodie-creek-bridge.html|archive-date=23 October 2019}}</ref>
== Construction ==
The bridge was purchased by the FIC for [[Pounds sterling|£]]2,281 ({{Inflation|UK|2281|1924|fmt=eq|r=-3|cursign=£}}) from David Rowell & Co, London.  The structure was shipped, in kit form, to the islands aboard the [[Pacific Steam Navigation Company]]'s vessel SS ''Ballena''.  The bridge was erected by engineer Charles P. Peters assisted by a stone mason/foreman and a gang of around 14 [[navvies]].<ref name=museum/>  Construction of the steel structure began in October 1924 and was complete by July 1925.<ref name=gov>{{cite web |title=Bridges of the Falkland Islands |url=http://www.falklands.gov.fk/pb/fi/bridges.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070622062441/http://www.falklands.gov.fk/pb/fi/bridges.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 June 2007 |website=Falkland Islands Philatelic Bureau |publisher=Falklands Islands Government |accessdate=5 June 2020 |date=22 June 2007}}</ref>  The approach roads were complete by October 1925, allowing the bridge to open in time for the start of the sheep shearing season.<ref name=museum/>  The structure was inspected by a party of the [[Royal Engineers]] during the 1982 [[Falklands War]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Norman |first1=Mike |title=The Falklands War – There and Back Again: The Story of Naval Party 8901 |date=2018 |publisher=[[Pen and Sword]] |isbn=978-1-5267-1079-6 |page=296 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tLPNDwAAQBAJ |language=en |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>
== Structure today ==
The bridge spans {{convert|400|ft|m}}. Its principal parts are an {{convert|8|ft|m|adj=on}} roadway (deck) suspended from four primary {{convert|2|in|cm|adj=on}} thick steel cables supported by two {{convert|40|ft|m|adj=on}} high towers at the ends of the span.  It is deteriorating and in need of restoration.  The Falklands Island Museum and National Trust has raised concerns that the structure may be lost.<ref name=museum/>
The bridge can be visited by tourists and lies around a fifteen-minute drive south of Goose Green.<ref name=wag/>  The bridge closed to traffic in 1997. A travel guide describes it as magnificent.<ref name=gov/><ref name=wag>{{cite book |last1=Wagstaff |first1=Will |title=Falkland Islands |date=2018 |publisher=[[Bradt Travel Guides]] |isbn=978-1-78477-618-3 |page=114 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0p5-DwAAQBAJ |language=en |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>  It is one of the few engineered bridges in the Falklands, where fords and improvised structures are more common.<ref>{{cite book |last1=International |first1=Bookwise |author2=Walden Publishing Limited |title=Latin America and Caribbean |date=1996 |publisher=Walden Publishing Limited |isbn=978-0-904439-55-7 |page=138 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YcVoAAAAMAAJ |language=en |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>  The structure is one of the southernmost suspension bridges.<ref name=wag/>  It was chosen for the 37-[[pence]] stamp of the October 2000 "Bridges of the Falkland Islands" [[Postage stamps and postal history of the Falkland Islands|local set]].<ref name=gov/>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050427225028/http://www.kpadgett.org.uk/falklands/Pages/bodie.htm Bodie Creek (with pictures)]
*[http://www.bridgemeister.com/bridge.php?bid=1922 Entry at Bridgemeister.com]
*[http://bodiecreekbridge.com/index.html How and why the Bodie Creek Bridge was built (illustrated)]
[[Category:Suspension bridges in the Falkland Islands]]
[[Category:East Falkland]]
[[Category:Bridges completed in 1925]]