


The tragic story behind Saint Anton Bridge, is that it fell, or "committed suicide", just before it was about to be demolished.

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Saint Anton Bridge

The gateway to the city.

Saint Anton Bridge is the gateway to Bilbao’s Old Town. It was actually here before the city we know today. Its exact date of construction is unknown, but it is said to be before 1300, the year that Diego Lopez founded the city of Bilbao. It is thought that the city was built around this bridge, as it was the only connecting point between the two riverbanks for many years. This brought about a huge settlement of fishermen and merchants to this river area. Locals protested the creation of newer bridges, which led to violent confrontations over the new works. After suffering through the Siege, the Carlist Wars and other vicissitudes, the bridge was left in ruins and the new one was built just metres away. Strangely enough, on the day it was supposed to be demolished in 1880 (even though many were against demolishing the symbol of their city), the bridge fell down itself, trapping all the workers. This is why people of Bilbao say that the “old Saint Anton Bridge committed suicide”.

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