Mayo Bridge

Mayo's Bridge (also known as Richmond's 14th St. Bridge) is located in Richmond, Virginia.[1] A four lane structure, it transports U.S. Route 360 across the James River. Signage identifies the bridge as "Mayo's Bridge."

Mayo's Bridge
Mayo's Bridge ca. 1917
Coordinates	37°31′45″N 77°26′03″W
Carries	US 360
Crosses	James River
Locale	Richmond, Virginia
Official name	Mayo's Bridge
Other name(s)	14th. St. Bridge; Mayo's Bridge
Maintained by	Richmond Dept. of Public Works
Characteristics
Total length	1,374 feet
History
Opened	1913
Statistics
Toll	none

The bridge is actually in two sections, separated near the middle by Mayo's Island. The total length is 1,374 feet (north and south sections combined). The current structure was built in 1913,[1] and accommodated heavy streetcar traffic. It is Richmond's oldest highway bridge across the James River.

It was built on the site of the city's first bridge completed in 1788 by John Mayo Jr., the grandson of the man who first laid out Richmond's grid pattern. During the American Civil War the bridge was burned by retreating Confederate soldiers on April 8, 1865.[2]

In 1882, the a portion of the bridge collapsed with nine people on it, however, no one was killed or badly hurt in the incident.[2]

Rising just 30 feet above the water line, Mayo's Bridge is currently Richmond's only bridge subject to flooding. Large floodgates in Richmond's Flood wall protect the surrounding areas on each side during James River flooding. The bridge's closeness to the river surface has made the sidewalks on either side of it popular fishing locations.

The burnt-out Mayo Bridge among the ruined city of Richmond at the end of the Civil War.