Main Street Bridge, Jacksonville

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Main Street Bridge, Jacksonville

Main Street Bridge, Jacksonville

Main Street Bridge is Jacksonville’s steel-blue handshake across the St. Johns River. Built for traffic, raised for boats, and admired for its vintage appearance, this vertical-lift beauty has been lifting spirits (and road decks) since 1941.

Started in 1938 by the Mount Vernon Bridge Company—with a pre-war nod from the U.S. War Department—the project took three years to complete, finally debuting with appropriate fanfare just months before the U.S. entered World War II. It’s the kind of infrastructure that doesn’t just get you from A to B—it insists you look up while doing it.

Technically part of US motorway network and handling four lanes of traffic, the bridge blends engineering muscle with Art Deco flair. Sure, it was officially named after longtime Mayor John T. Alsop Jr. back in 1957, but most folks still call it the Main Street Bridge. Old habits—much as iconic silhouettes—die hard...

Today, it remains Jacksonville’s only operational lift bridge for vehicles, still rising gracefully to let ships pass like it's no big deal. While its siblings have gone stiff with age (and fixed-span upgrades), this one keeps moving—literally and metaphorically—carrying cars, history, and a touch of steel nostalgia high above the river.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Jacksonville. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

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Main Street Bridge on Map

Sight Name: Main Street Bridge
Sight Location: Jacksonville, USA (See walking tours in Jacksonville)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Jacksonville, Florida

Create Your Own Walk in Jacksonville

Create Your Own Walk in Jacksonville

Creating your own self-guided walk in Jacksonville is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Jacksonville Introduction Walking Tour

Jacksonville Introduction Walking Tour

Jacksonville, Florida—a place where size does matter. Stretching its way into the record books as the largest city by area in the continental U.S., Jacksonville hugs the northeastern edge of the Sunshine State, where the St. Johns River meanders lazily toward the Atlantic.

Long before traffic jams and beach selfies, the Timucua people called this area home. Then came the usual suspects:...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.1 Km or 1.9 Miles
Downtown Historical Buildings Walking Tour

Downtown Historical Buildings Walking Tour

Downtown Jacksonville doesn’t need to shout to prove it has history—it just lets the buildings do the talking. Walk a few blocks, and you’ll pass through layers of ambition, recovery, reinvention, and more than a few architectural flexes.

Riddle time. Gothic arches, towering spires, and stained glass that catches the light just right— the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception makes you...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.7 Km or 1.7 Miles