Jones Bridge
Encyclopedia
Jones Bridge is a bridge that spans the Pasig River
Pasig River
The Pasig River is a river in the Philippines that connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Stretching for , it is lined by Metro Manila on each side...

 in the city Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

 connecting the districts of Binondo on Rosario Street (Calle Rosario, now Quintin Paredes St) with the center of Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...

. The previous bridge that connected the two districts was the Puente Grande (Great Bridge), later called the Puente de España
Puente de España
Puente de España or the Bridge of Spain was a bridge that spanned the Pasig River in the Philippines connecting the districts of Binondo and Sta. Cruz on Calle Nueva with the center of downtown Manila. The span was the oldest established in the country before it was damaged by flood in 1914...

(Bridge of Spain) located one block upriver on Nueva Street (Calle Nueva, now E. T. Yuchengco St), the span considered to be the oldest established in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

.

Jones Bridge I

After the floods of the September 1914 damaged Puente de España
Puente de España
Puente de España or the Bridge of Spain was a bridge that spanned the Pasig River in the Philippines connecting the districts of Binondo and Sta. Cruz on Calle Nueva with the center of downtown Manila. The span was the oldest established in the country before it was damaged by flood in 1914...

, construction of a replacement bridge was started in 1916 by the American Colonial government, one block downriver from the original location. It was named as Jones Bridge after former Virginia Rep. William Atkinson Jones
William Atkinson Jones
William Atkinson Jones was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1891 to 1918.Jones was born in Warsaw, Virginia, and graduated from the law department of the University of Virginia in 1870...

, who was the principal author of the Philippine Autonomy Act of 1916. The Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...

 design by Juan M. Arellano was an ornate concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...

 arch bridge
Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...

. The entrances to the bridge were bordered by pillars topped with statues. The bridge was destroyed by the bombs of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

Jones Bridge II

After the war, the bridge was reconstructed by the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads and then Philippine Bureau of Public Works
Department of Public Works and Highways (Philippines)
The Philippines’ Department of Public Works and Highways , abbreviated as DPWH, is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for all safety of projects in the field of public works...

 under the Philippine Rehabilitation Act of 1945. Carrying the name of the bridge, the new span was a simple bridge with metal pole railings, bare in design. The design features from the old bridge that survived the war, were moved to other locations in Manila. One of the statues that was previously set on top of one of the pillar at the entrance to the bridge was moved to Rizal Park
Rizal Park
Rizal Park, also known as Luneta Park or colloquially Luneta, is a historical urban park located in the heart of the city of Manila, Philippines, adjacent to the old walled city of Manila, now Intramuros. Since the Spanish Colonial Era, the park has been a favorite spot for unwinding, socializing,...

.

Present state

Jones Bridge was once hailed as Manila's queen of the bridges. Some recent improvements on the current bridge were the addition of street lamps and replacing the old pole railings with stone railings reminiscent of the first Jones Bridge.
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