Ouse Bridge

The original Roman bridge over the Ouse was eventually replaced by a wooden bridge built further downstream by the Vikings. In 1154, it collapsed under the weight of a crowd which had gathered to greet St William of York on his return from exile. It was replaced by a stone bridge, but part of this was swept away by floods in the winter of 1564-5. In 1367 the first public toilets in Yorkshire, and likely England, were opened on the bridge. The repaired bridge of 1565 had a new central arch spanning 81 ft, and was described by Defoe as "...near 70 foot in diameter; it is, without exception, the greatest in England, some say it's as large as the Rialto at Venice, though I think not." This bridge was dismantled between 1810 and 1818 in order to make way for the New Ouse Bridge, designed by Peter Atkinson the younger, completed in 1821.

Photo 765, May 2011

Ouse Bridge from Lendel Bridge

Photo 431, May 2011