Shakespeare Bridge

Shakespeare Bridge
Shakespeare Bridge in 1956
Coordinates34°06′20″N 118°16′46″W / 34.105451°N 118.279546°W / 34.105451; -118.279546
CarriesFranklin Avenue
CrossesArroyo de la Sacatela
LocaleFranklin Hills section of Los Angeles, California
Characteristics
DesignOpen-spandrel reinforced concrete deck arch bridge
Total length260 feet (79 m)
Width30 feet (9.1 m)
History
Opened1926 – rebuilt 1998
Location
Interactive map of Shakespeare Bridge
Franklin Avenue Bridge
(Shakespeare Bridge)
Shakespeare Bridge in 2007
Interactive map of Franklin Avenue Bridge
(Shakespeare Bridge)
DesignatedApril 17, 1974
Reference no.126

The Shakespeare Bridge, officially the Franklin Avenue Bridge, in the Franklin Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, was built in 1926. It is made of concrete and decorated in a Gothic style, with eight turrets. It was named after William Shakespeare and later designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #126 in 1974.

History

Shakespeare Bridge was built to cross over Arroyo de la Sacatela, a part of the Ballona Creek watershed, which prior to 1930 fed Bimini Slough in what is now Koreatown. It is 262 feet (80 meters) long.

The bridge was rebuilt in 1998 after the Northridge earthquake due to concerns that the structure would not be stable in the event of an earthquake in the Franklin Hills area. As part of the seismic retrofit, the deck, sidewalks and railings were removed and reconstructed using reinforced concrete. The expansion joints were also removed, so the bridge deck is now a one-piece structural diaphragm built to transfer all seismic forces into the abutment walls at either end of the bridge. All of the rebuilding was done in order to preserve the historic appearance of the bridge.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Los Angeles Department of City Planning (September 7, 2007). Historic-Cultural Monuments (HCM) Listing: City Declared Monuments (PDF) (Report). City of Los Angeles. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 28, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  2. 1 2 latimes (October 8, 2026). "Shakespeare Bridge centennial". www.tiktok.com. Retrieved October 9, 2026.
  3. ↑ Reynolds, Christopher (October 2, 2026). "L.A.'s Shakespeare Bridge is turning 100. Shall we compare it to a summer's day?". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ↑ "Uncovering L.A.'s Lost Streams". PBS SoCal. September 6, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2024.