Faidherbe Bridge
Encyclopedia
Faidherbe Bridge is a road bridge over the Sénégal River
which links the island of the city of Saint-Louis
in Senegal
to the African mainland. The metal bridge is 507.35 metres (1,664.5 ft) long and 10.5 metres (34.4 ft) wide, weighing 1500 tonne. It has eight spans
, of which the longest five are 78.26 metres (256.8 ft).
Until the 19th century, access to the island was made through boats. After the introduction of a ferry that could transport 150 passengers, Louis Faidherbe
quickly saw that the system was clearly overrun and decided to construct the first bridge over the Sénégal River
. The governor of Senegal
, Henri de Lamothe decided to take a loan worth five million gold francs
to construct a new metallic bridge in Saint-Louis
. After the construction company was selected, they all decided to construct a new metallic bridge with a section capable of turning 90 degrees to allow the passage of ships. The bridge was opened on July 14, 1897. In the 2000s, a US$ 27 million rehabilitation plan has been inaugurated.
, the first capital of the French West Africa
is situated on an island near the estuary
of the Sénégal River. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a thin 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) strip of sand called the Langue de Barbarie
, which starts from Nouadhibou
in Mauritania
and extends all the way to Saint-Louis
. The suburbs of Guet Ndar and Ndar-Tout are situated in this area.
All the way to the 19th century, access to the island was made through boats. The troops, horses and all the equipment of the French colonial army were moved with some very light boats which could break at any moment.
In 1858, Louis Faidherbe
, the governor of Senegal, inaugurated the Bouteville boat that was capable of transporting 150 passengers, animals and all kinds of goods. The boat made ten crosses every day and the costs differed: five centimes
for a person, 50 centimes for a horse
, cow
or camel
, and two francs
for a carriage. In less than a year it was obvious that this system was overrun and a second boat was introduced but with no success.
Seeing this, the frigate
captain Robin, friend of Louis Faidherbe
, asked Prince Jérôme Napoléon
, Minister of Algeria and the African Colonies, the approval for the construction of a floating bridge. Opened on July 2, 1865, the bridge had a total length of 680 metres (2,231 ft) (the floating part of the bridge had a length of 350 metres (1,148.3 ft)) and a width of 4 metres (13.1 ft). The floating part was formed from 40 metal pontoons
which supported a wooden deck
. Three of these pontoons were specially designed so that it could be created a 20 metres (65.6 ft) gap so that large vessels could pass. The bridge was named Faidherbe Bridge by a decree of Napoleon III of France
.
The opening in 1885 of the Saint-Louis
–Dakar
railway increased the traffic over the bridge. The railway reached all the way to Soc and all the goods hauled between the coast and the railway station had to cross over the bridge. To prevent the breakdown of the bridge a special decree was given so that the maximum weight for a vehicle that crosses the bridge to be less than one and a half tonnes. With all its difficulties the bridge remained in service 32 years, until 1897 when it was dismantled.
, much of the money being for the construction of a metallic bridge between Saint-Louis and Soc. The loan was approved on November 2, 1892, by the French president Marie François Sadi Carnot
. A French bank, CDG, agreed to give the loan with a low interest
of only four percent.
The auction
was organised by the Ministry of Colonies, which sent five officers to Senegal for evaluation. After examining each one these offers the Faidherbe Bridge Committee selected two of them, from Nouguier, Kessler et Cie, and from Société de Construction de Levallois-Perret (owned by Gustave Eiffel
). The Faidherbe Bridge Committee and the technical committee in Paris agreed that the Société de Construction de Levallois-Perret project was the best for the site. On the other hand the president of the public works in Senegal and councilman
Jean-Jacques Crespin supported the Nouguier, Kessler et Cie project. In the end the contract was awarded to Nouguier, Kessler et Cie at a price of 1.88 million gold francs.
and that the parts were originally designed for the King Carol I Bridge
over the Danube River
in Romania
. Other sources say that the metallic parts were intended for a bridge in Austria–Hungary over the Danube River in Vienna
or Budapest
. Finally another myth regarding the beams of the bridge says that the parts were intended for an unspecified site but the vessel transporting mysteriously sunk and the authorities in Senegal took advantage of this situation and built a local bridge.
The information available in Romania for the King Carol I Bridge in Cernavodă
, as well as the results of scientists in France, say that the myths are pure fiction. First of all the Romanian Government
never finalised the construction contract with the company of Gustave Eiffel or with another foreign company, making the decision to build the bridge only with local companies. The Cernavodă Bridge was made entirely by Romanians, fulfilling the design of Anghel Saligny
, which was also the supervisor of the site. In these conditions, not knowing if the contract will be approved, it is unlikely that a foreign company would build the whole superstructure of the bridge. On the other hand, in Austria–Hungary there was no need to construct a low bridge like the Faidherbe because of the trade routes on the Danube River.
ed girder
s. The bridge has in total eight span
s of which one span of 42.95 metres (140.9 ft), two spans of 36.55 metres (119.9 ft) and five spans of 78.26 metres (256.8 ft). The total length of the bridge is 507.35 metres (1,664.5 ft) and the width is 10.5 metres (34.4 ft). The total weight of the deck is 1500 tonne. The second span from the city is mobile, being capable of turning 45 degrees to let small ships to cross.
and donkey
races
. The second opening was on October 19, 1897, in the presence of André Lebon, the prime minister of the French colonies.
and was in need of urgent repair. The rehabilitation works are co-financed by the French Development Agency
(AFD) and by the Government of Senegal. The total cost of the works was estimated to be US$ 27 million, of which US$ 17 million is from AFD and US$ 10 million is from the government.
The spans of the bridge were replaced between November 2008 and . The total work is expected to finish in mid-August and inaugured in October 2011.
Sénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
which links the island of the city of Saint-Louis
Saint-Louis, Senegal
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
in Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
to the African mainland. The metal bridge is 507.35 metres (1,664.5 ft) long and 10.5 metres (34.4 ft) wide, weighing 1500 tonne. It has eight spans
Span (architecture)
Span is the distance between two intermediate supports for a structure, e.g. a beam or a bridge.A span can be closed by a solid beam or of a rope...
, of which the longest five are 78.26 metres (256.8 ft).
Until the 19th century, access to the island was made through boats. After the introduction of a ferry that could transport 150 passengers, Louis Faidherbe
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
quickly saw that the system was clearly overrun and decided to construct the first bridge over the Sénégal River
Sénégal River
The Sénégal River is a long river in West Africa that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania.The Sénégal's headwaters are the Semefé and Bafing rivers which both originate in Guinea; they form a small part of the Guinean-Malian border before coming together at Bafoulabé in Mali...
. The governor of Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, Henri de Lamothe decided to take a loan worth five million gold francs
French franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
to construct a new metallic bridge in Saint-Louis
Saint-Louis, Senegal
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
. After the construction company was selected, they all decided to construct a new metallic bridge with a section capable of turning 90 degrees to allow the passage of ships. The bridge was opened on July 14, 1897. In the 2000s, a US$ 27 million rehabilitation plan has been inaugurated.
The first bridge
The city of Saint-LouisSaint-Louis, Senegal
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
, the first capital of the French West Africa
French West Africa
French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Upper Volta , Dahomey and Niger...
is situated on an island near the estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
of the Sénégal River. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a thin 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) strip of sand called the Langue de Barbarie
Langue de Barbarie
The Langue de Barbarie is a thin, sandy peninsula, adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, located in western Senegal, in the neighbourhood of the city of Saint-Louis.. The peninsula separates the ocean from the final section of the Senegal River...
, which starts from Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial centre. The city itself has about 75,000 inhabitants expanding to over 90,000 in the larger metropolitan area. It is situated on a 40-mile peninsula or headland called Ras Nouadhibou, Cap Blanc, or Cabo Blanco, of...
in Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and extends all the way to Saint-Louis
Saint-Louis, Senegal
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
. The suburbs of Guet Ndar and Ndar-Tout are situated in this area.
All the way to the 19th century, access to the island was made through boats. The troops, horses and all the equipment of the French colonial army were moved with some very light boats which could break at any moment.
In 1858, Louis Faidherbe
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
, the governor of Senegal, inaugurated the Bouteville boat that was capable of transporting 150 passengers, animals and all kinds of goods. The boat made ten crosses every day and the costs differed: five centimes
French franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
for a person, 50 centimes for a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
, cow
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
or camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
, and two francs
French franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
for a carriage. In less than a year it was obvious that this system was overrun and a second boat was introduced but with no success.
Seeing this, the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
captain Robin, friend of Louis Faidherbe
Louis Faidherbe
Louis Léon César Faidherbe was a French general and colonial administrator. He created the Senegalese Tirailleurs when he was governor of Senegal.- Background :...
, asked Prince Jérôme Napoléon
Jérôme Napoléon
Prince Jérôme Xavier Marie Joseph Victor Napoléon is currently second in the line of succession for the Imperial throne of France. He is the son of Prince Louis Napoléon and the younger brother of the current head of the Bonaparte family Prince Charles Napoléon . He is a librarian and is...
, Minister of Algeria and the African Colonies, the approval for the construction of a floating bridge. Opened on July 2, 1865, the bridge had a total length of 680 metres (2,231 ft) (the floating part of the bridge had a length of 350 metres (1,148.3 ft)) and a width of 4 metres (13.1 ft). The floating part was formed from 40 metal pontoons
Pontoon bridge
A pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
which supported a wooden deck
Deck (bridge)
A bridge deck or road bed is the roadway, or the pedestrian walkway, surface of a bridge. It is not to be confused with any deck of a ship.The deck may be of concrete,wood which in turn may be covered with asphalt concrete or other pavement...
. Three of these pontoons were specially designed so that it could be created a 20 metres (65.6 ft) gap so that large vessels could pass. The bridge was named Faidherbe Bridge by a decree of Napoleon III of France
Napoleon III of France
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...
.
The opening in 1885 of the Saint-Louis
Saint-Louis, Senegal
Saint-Louis, or Ndar as it is called in Wolof, is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially estimated at 176,000 in 2005. Saint-Louis...
–Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
railway increased the traffic over the bridge. The railway reached all the way to Soc and all the goods hauled between the coast and the railway station had to cross over the bridge. To prevent the breakdown of the bridge a special decree was given so that the maximum weight for a vehicle that crosses the bridge to be less than one and a half tonnes. With all its difficulties the bridge remained in service 32 years, until 1897 when it was dismantled.
Construction of a new bridge
In the opening of his speech in the General Council of Senegal, governor Henri de Lamothe proposed that the country should take a loan for infrastructure development. The council agreed on a loan worth five million gold francsFrench franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
, much of the money being for the construction of a metallic bridge between Saint-Louis and Soc. The loan was approved on November 2, 1892, by the French president Marie François Sadi Carnot
Marie François Sadi Carnot
Marie François Sadi Carnot was a French statesman and the fourth president of the Third French Republic. He served as the President of France from 1887 until his assassination in 1894.-Early life:...
. A French bank, CDG, agreed to give the loan with a low interest
Interest
Interest is a fee paid by a borrower of assets to the owner as a form of compensation for the use of the assets. It is most commonly the price paid for the use of borrowed money, or money earned by deposited funds....
of only four percent.
The auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
was organised by the Ministry of Colonies, which sent five officers to Senegal for evaluation. After examining each one these offers the Faidherbe Bridge Committee selected two of them, from Nouguier, Kessler et Cie, and from Société de Construction de Levallois-Perret (owned by Gustave Eiffel
Gustave Eiffel
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel was a French structural engineer from the École Centrale Paris, an architect, an entrepreneur and a specialist of metallic structures...
). The Faidherbe Bridge Committee and the technical committee in Paris agreed that the Société de Construction de Levallois-Perret project was the best for the site. On the other hand the president of the public works in Senegal and councilman
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
Jean-Jacques Crespin supported the Nouguier, Kessler et Cie project. In the end the contract was awarded to Nouguier, Kessler et Cie at a price of 1.88 million gold francs.
Link with King Carol I Bridge
There are many myths regarding the construction of the Faidherbe Bridge which are present even today and are depicted in some tourist guides. The construction of the bridge is attributed to Gustave Eiffel. In general it says that the metallic parts of the bridge represents a gift from the French GovernmentGovernment of France
The government of the French Republic is a semi-presidential system determined by the French Constitution of the fifth Republic. The nation declares itself to be an "indivisible, secular, democratic, and social Republic"...
and that the parts were originally designed for the King Carol I Bridge
King Carol I Bridge
The Anghel Saligny Bridge was built between 1890 and 1895 in Romania over the Danube and Borcea branch of the Danube, and when it was completed it then became the longest bridge in Europe and the third longest in the world...
over the Danube River
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. Other sources say that the metallic parts were intended for a bridge in Austria–Hungary over the Danube River in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
or Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
. Finally another myth regarding the beams of the bridge says that the parts were intended for an unspecified site but the vessel transporting mysteriously sunk and the authorities in Senegal took advantage of this situation and built a local bridge.
The information available in Romania for the King Carol I Bridge in Cernavodă
Cernavoda
Cernavodă is a town in Constanţa County, Dobrogea, Romania with a population of 20,514.The town's name is derived from the Slavic černa voda , meaning "black water". This name is regarded by some scholars as a calque of the earlier Thracian name Axíopa, from IE *n.ksei "dark" and upā "water"...
, as well as the results of scientists in France, say that the myths are pure fiction. First of all the Romanian Government
Government of Romania
The Government of Romania forms one half of the country's executive branch . It is headed by the Prime-Minister, and consists of the Ministries, various subordinated institutions and agencies, and the 42 Prefectures...
never finalised the construction contract with the company of Gustave Eiffel or with another foreign company, making the decision to build the bridge only with local companies. The Cernavodă Bridge was made entirely by Romanians, fulfilling the design of Anghel Saligny
Anghel Saligny
Anghel Saligny was a Romanian engineer, most famous for designing the Feteşti-Cernavodă railway bridge over the Danube, the longest bridge in Europe at that time. He also designed the storage facilities in Constanţa seaport, one of the earliest examples of reinforced concrete architecture in...
, which was also the supervisor of the site. In these conditions, not knowing if the contract will be approved, it is unlikely that a foreign company would build the whole superstructure of the bridge. On the other hand, in Austria–Hungary there was no need to construct a low bridge like the Faidherbe because of the trade routes on the Danube River.
Construction of the metallic bridge
The new bridge has a metal deck formed with rivetRivet
A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the buck-tail. On installation the rivet is placed in a punched or pre-drilled hole, and the tail is upset, or bucked A rivet...
ed girder
Girder
A girder is a support beam used in construction. Girders often have an I-beam cross section for strength, but may also have a box shape, Z shape or other forms. Girder is the term used to denote the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams...
s. The bridge has in total eight span
Span (architecture)
Span is the distance between two intermediate supports for a structure, e.g. a beam or a bridge.A span can be closed by a solid beam or of a rope...
s of which one span of 42.95 metres (140.9 ft), two spans of 36.55 metres (119.9 ft) and five spans of 78.26 metres (256.8 ft). The total length of the bridge is 507.35 metres (1,664.5 ft) and the width is 10.5 metres (34.4 ft). The total weight of the deck is 1500 tonne. The second span from the city is mobile, being capable of turning 45 degrees to let small ships to cross.
Opening
A first opening of the bridge took place in the same day with the ceremonies for the national day of Senegal on July 14, 1897, in the presence of governor Chabié. The ribbon for the access zone was cut by the governor's wife, then the officials walked a short distance to the mobile deck, which was opened to allow the passage of the military ship L'Ardent. 21 cannon shots were fired at dusk and dawn to commemorate the construction of the bridge and on that day there were organised ceremonies including horse racesHorse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
and donkey
Donkey
The donkey or ass, Equus africanus asinus, is a domesticated member of the Equidae or horse family. The wild ancestor of the donkey is the African Wild Ass, E...
races
Racing
A sport race is a competition of speed, against an objective criterion, usually a clock or to a specific point. The competitors in a race try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time...
. The second opening was on October 19, 1897, in the presence of André Lebon, the prime minister of the French colonies.
Modernisation and rehabilitation works
After more than 100 years since it was opened the bridge has suffered from corrosionCorrosion
Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen...
and was in need of urgent repair. The rehabilitation works are co-financed by the French Development Agency
French Development Agency
French Development Agency is the French international development agency.The Agence Française de Développement is a public institution providing development financing...
(AFD) and by the Government of Senegal. The total cost of the works was estimated to be US$ 27 million, of which US$ 17 million is from AFD and US$ 10 million is from the government.
The spans of the bridge were replaced between November 2008 and . The total work is expected to finish in mid-August and inaugured in October 2011.