Tower Bridge (Part 1)
HOW DID THEY BUILD TOWER BRIDGE? (PART ONE) From the bottom up! It's not a joke. When you look at Tower Bridge, you see a magnificent structure, but did you know that more of the bridge is below the water than above the water? You start with the foundation. And in the case of Tower Bridge, you start deep, deep, deep under the surface of the Thames - 10 metres below the surface of the water , in fact. On 22nd April 1886 , divers started preparing the riverbed for the massive piers. It must have been a scary job - after all, it was 1886. They didn't have scuba gear and safety devices and computer equipment. The divers wore leather suits with metal helmets, and they were connected to the surface by air tubes. They used hand tools and shovels. Above them, on barges, other workers built caissons . What is a caisson? I'm glad you asked. A caisson is an open-ended watertight metal box, with sharp edges. Workers lowered each caisson into the river - down, down, down