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The Pueyrredón Bridge (officially called Prilidiano Pueyrredón Bridge) is a
bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- or ...
in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. It connects Vieytes street of Barracas neighborhood with Bartolomé Mitre Avenue in
Avellaneda Partido Avellaneda is a partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It has an area of and a population of 663,953 in 2001. Its administrative seat is the city of Avellaneda. The partido is located in the Greater Buenos Aires urban area, separated fro ...
, crossing over
Matanza River The River The Matanza River is known by several names, including, in Spanish, Río de la Matanza ("the slaughter river" in English), Río Matanza ("slaughter river"), Río Mataderos ("slaughterhouses river"), Río de la Manzana ("the apple rive ...
(popularly known as ''Riachuelo''). The bridge carries vehicular, bicycle, and pedestrian traffic between both points. It was named after painter and architect
Prilidiano Pueyrredón Prilidiano Pueyrredón (January 24, 1823 – November 3, 1870) was an Argentine painter, architect and engineer. One of the country's first prominent painters, he was known for his costumbrist sensibility and preference for everyday themes. ...
, one of the country's first prominent artists.


History


Puente de Gálvez

Since the 17th century the only way to cross the ''Riachuelo'' was by
canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...
. Some of the points to cross the river were Paso Pedro Salazar, named after a neighbor owner of a ranch near there. In 1653 the Cabildo of Buenos Aires ruled the crossing by canoe for public use, becoming the first crossing to connect both margins. It would be known as "Paso de la Canoa" since then, and was the place where the first bridge over Riachuelo would be built years later. On December 1, 1791, the first bridge over Matanza River was inaugurated. It stood over the Paso de la Canoa in Camino Real al Sud (currently Montes de Oca Avenue in
Barracas, Buenos Aires Barracas is a ''barrio'', or district, in the southeast part of the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is located between the railroad of Ferrocarril General Manuel Belgrano and the Riachuelo River, and the streets ''Regimiento de Patricios'', ' ...
). Juan Gutiérrez Gálvez was in charge during its construction. At the beginning, the bridge would be made of stone, cal and brick but it finally was made of wood due to the lack of skilled labour and materials. The bridge was granted in concession to Gutiérrez Gálvez for a period of 5 years, including the maintenance and toll system. Toll's cost was of 2 Reales per loaded carriage and 1 Real per single coaches. Aborigins, mulatto and black people paid half the rates. The first name given to the bridge was "Puente de Gálvez", then turning to "Puente de Madera", "Puente de Barracas" and "Puente de la Restauración de las Leyes" during the mandate of
Juan Manuel de Rosas Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rosas (30 March 1793 – 14 March 1877), nicknamed "Restorer of the Laws", was an Argentine politician and army officer who ruled Buenos Aires Province and briefly the Argentine Confederation. Althoug ...
, where it was also painted in red, the color that identified Federalist Party. After the first
British invasions of the River Plate The British invasions of the River Plate were two unsuccessful British attempts to seize control of areas in the Spanish colony of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata that were located around the Río de la Plata in South America – in p ...
the bridge was set afire to avoid the British to cross although it would be unsuccessful. On December 23, the bridge was opened again. The Gálvez bridge was destroyed after a Matanza River flooding in 1858.


First Pueyrredón bridge and successors

Because of the flooding of May 1858 that had destroyed the Barracas (Gálvez) Bridge, artist
Prilidiano Pueyrredón Prilidiano Pueyrredón (January 24, 1823 – November 3, 1870) was an Argentine painter, architect and engineer. One of the country's first prominent painters, he was known for his costumbrist sensibility and preference for everyday themes. ...
(who was also an engineer) offered the government to design an iron bridge with a double-leaf bascule mechanism to allow ships to cruise in case they were higher than it. The government approved the project and granted concession to Pueyrredón and his partners Mr. Medrano, Mr. Panthou and Mr. Escribano. The bridge was finished in 1867. The day it was inaugated the mechanism failed and the bridge collapsed. The entrepreneurs signed a new contract committing to build a new bridge, to be inaugurated in November 1871. As a result of the disaster, Pueyrredón suffered from financial problems and died in 1870, one year before the bridge was opened to public. In memory of Pueyrredón, the Government gave his name to the bridge, finally inaugurated in 1871. The Pueyrredón bridge lasted only 13 years so it was dragged by the biggest Riachuelo flood on September 23, 1884. It was immediately replaced by a wooden bridge. In 1899 a new
bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- or ...
made of iron began to be built, being inaugurated in 1903. The bridge added two rail tracks for the
tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
s which use had been spread within Buenos Aires. Because of the increasing traffic of
carriage A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...
s and trams, the construction of a new and bigger bridge was considered necessary by the Government. This third bridge operated until 1931. On September 20, 1931, a fourth bridge (also bascule) was inaugurated after the precedent one was dismantled. Because of the big amount of vehicular traffic on the bridge (estimated in about 21,000 vehicles per day), the Government set schedules for the spans to be raised to allow big ships to navigate the river. In 1945 the bridge was opened 70 times per month.'' El Riachuelo, sus Puentes y las Obras de Cruce a Encarar en el Próximo Quinquenio'' by José Negri, published by Facultad de Ciencias Físicomatemáticas of La Plata, 1947 The bascule mechanism is no longer use since 1969, due to on December 19, 1969, the
New Pueyrredón Bridge The New Pueyrredón Bridge, officially New Prilidiano Pueyrredón Bridge, is a bridge in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that connects President Arturo Frondizi Highway (AU9, formerly 9 de Julio Sur Highway) in Barracas neighborhood with Bartolomé Mit ...
was inaugurated. causing the old bridge lost part of its vehicular traffic. In January 2009 the Pueyrredón bridge was closed to be remodelled, being opened again one year later is spite of the announcements stating that works would last only 6 months."Recuperaron el viejo puente Pueyrredón y ya está abierto al tránsito"
''Clarín'', 12 Jan 2010


See also

*
New Pueyrredón Bridge The New Pueyrredón Bridge, officially New Prilidiano Pueyrredón Bridge, is a bridge in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that connects President Arturo Frondizi Highway (AU9, formerly 9 de Julio Sur Highway) in Barracas neighborhood with Bartolomé Mit ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pueyrredon Bridge Bridges in Argentina Bascule bridges Bridges completed in the 20th century