The 1831 version of the London Bridge was deemed by the City of London to have reached the end of its useful life and in the late 1960’s was auctioned off to the highest bidder, an Arizona real estate developer for $2.46 million. Robert McCullough had the bridge dismantled, shipped through the Panama Canal and into southwestern Arizona, and reconstructed on the edge of Colorado River reservoir. Once reconstruction was complete and a canal dug under the bridge to create an island in Lake Havasu, officials came from London to dedicate the bridge in 1971. We went a few miles out of our way today for the curiosity of seeing a misplaced piece of history set in a tourist park. We walked the bridge, found a fun geocache, got some ice cream, and got into a conversation about our T@B because Steve was wearing a Tearstock t-shirt. We noticed a curiosity. If we had known ahead of time, we would have brought our own and participated in the Love Locks tradition that has recently spread from Paris to Lake Havasu!
The Hidden London Tour
On the Hidden London Tour today we visited a number of curious places relating to the history of public transportation hidden in plain sight.
Greg just sent us a link to a story in Atlas Obscura. Apparently land that we visited adjacent to the bridge actually belongs to the British Crown and pays rent on the property on an annual basis. The web address below leads to an article that is worth the read!
http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/london-is-still-paying-rent-to-the-queen-on-a-property-leased-in-1211