The P Street Bridge is a 336 feet (102.4 m) 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...

 that conveys P Street

P Street (Washington, D.C.)

P Street NW, Washington, D.C., runs from the eastern boundary of Georgetown University to North Capitol Street NW, with an additional section running from the western edge of Georgetown University to Foxhall Road NW....

 across Rock Creek

Rock Creek (Potomac River)

Rock Creek is a free-flowing tributary of the Potomac River, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean via the Chesapeake Bay. The creek is long, with a drainage area of about...

 and Rock Creek Park

Rock Creek Park

Rock Creek Park is a large urban natural area with public park facilities that bisects Washington, D.C. The park is administered by the National Park Service.-Rock Creek Park:The main section of the park contains , or , along the Rock Creek Valley...

 between the Georgetown

Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...

 and Dupont Circle

Dupont Circle

Dupont Circle is a traffic circle, park, neighborhood, and historic district in Northwest Washington, D.C. The traffic circle is located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue NW, Connecticut Avenue NW, New Hampshire Avenue NW, P Street NW, and 19th Street NW...

 neighborhoods of Northwest

Washington, D.C. (northwest)

Northwest is the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and is located north of the National Mall and west of North Capitol Street...

 Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 The first bridge at this site was constructed in 1855 and was replaced in 1935 by the current structure.

The bridge reopened on July 15, 2004, after a year-long, $3.5-million reconstruction project, the first since its completion in 1935.

Renaming

In June 2006, the Dupont Circle Advisory Neighborhood Commission (2B) discussed a proposal to give the bridge a ceremonial designation to commemorate the 225th anniversary of the end of the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

. On October 14, 2006, the P Street Bridge was ceremonially renamed Lauzun's Legion Bridge for Lauzun's Legion

Lauzun's Legion

Lauzun's Legion was a French Regiment in the American War for Independence: Lauzun's Legion principal engagements were White Plains 1781, and Yorktown.-Unit History:...

 , a specially constructed unit that was formed on March 5, 1780, from various detachments of the French Army

French Army

The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...

 and Navy

French Navy

The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...

 commanded by Armand Louis de Gontaut, Duc de Lauzun

Armand Louis de Gontaut

Armand Louis de Gontaut, Duc de Lauzun, later duc de Biron, and usually referred to by historians of the French Revolution simply as Biron was a French soldier and politician, known for the part he played in the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary Wars.-Early titles:Born in...

 at the Siege of Yorktown

Siege of Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...

. Present at the renaming ceremony were French Ambassador Jean-David Levitte

Jean-David Levitte

Jean-David Levitte is a French diplomat, formerly the French ambassador to the United States, and currently diplomatic advisor and sherpa to President Nicolas Sarkozy. He has also been named head of the future National Security Council....

, Jacques Bossiere, and representatives of the D.C. Daughters of the American Revolution

Daughters of the American Revolution

The Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence....

 and D.C. Children of the American Revolution

Children of the American Revolution

The Children of the American Revolution was founded in 1895 by Harriett Lothrop. After proposing the idea for a children’s branch at the Daughters of the American Revolution Continental Congress, it was promptly chartered by the United States Congress...

.

External links