Anderson Memorial Bridge (commonly but incorrectly called Larz Anderson Bridge) connects

Allston Allston is an officially recognized neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was named after the American painter and poet Washington Allston. It comprises the land covered by the zip code 02134. For the most part, Allston is ...

, a neighborhood of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

. The bridge stands on the site of the Great Bridge built in 1662, the first structure to span the

Charles River The Charles River (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ), sometimes called the River Charles or simply the Charles, is an river in eastern Massachusetts. It flows northeast from Hopkinton, Massachusetts, Hopkinton to Boston along a highly me ...

. It brings Boston traffic (from North Harvard Street) into

Harvard Square Harvard Square is a triangular plaza at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue (Boston), Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street (Cambridge, Massachusetts), Brattle Street and John F. Kennedy Street near the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts, C ...

(via JFK Street) and was finished in 1915.Bridges of Cambridge
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Name

Often assumed to be named after

Larz Anderson Larz Anderson (August 15, 1866 – April 13, 1937) was an American diplomat and ''bon vivant''. He served as second secretary at the United States Legation to the Court of St James's, London; as first secretary and later ''chargé d'affaires ...

, the bridge was actually built by him as a memorial to his father, Nicholas Longworth Anderson. To do so, Anderson was helped by the huge family fortune of his wife,

Isabel Weld Perkins Isabel Anderson (March 29, 1876 – November 3, 1948), , was a Boston heiress, author, and society hostess who left a legacy to the public that includes a park and two museums. Life Early life Born at 284 Marlborough Street in Boston's B ...

. According to the Metropolitan Park Commission of 1913:

Construction

The bridge was designed by the architectural firm of Wheelwright, Haven and Hoyt and completed under the direction of John R. Rablin, chief engineer for the Metropolitan District Commission.

Rehabilitation

From 2012 to 2016

MassDOT The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) oversees roads, public transit, aeronautics, and transportation licensing and registration in the US state of Massachusetts. It was created on November 1, 2009, by the 186th Sessio ...

rehabilitated the Anderson Memorial Bridge at a cost of $25million.. The project repaired the arches and replaced the parapets, sidewalks, lighting, and the bridge deck. The bridge now has three lanes of traffic (two northbound and one southbound) and one bicycle lane.

Characteristics

Anderson Memorial Bridge is constructed of reinforced

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

accented by

red brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

. The bridge's spandrel walls and panels are fashioned to give the illusion of rough-hewn

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

. It has a

Georgian Revival Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover, George I, George II, Ge ...

design with neoclassical influences that visually connect it to the other bridges that span the Charles as well as the nearby buildings of

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. Architectural author Douglas Shand-Tucci writes: The bridge stands next to the

Weld Boathouse Weld Boathouse is a Harvard University-owned building on the bank of the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The current structure was designed by Peabody and Stearns and is named for George Walker Weld, who donated the funds for its cons ...

and was designed with "a high enough arch to admit the passage of all sorts of pleasure craft." It may be noted that both the bridge and the boathouse (built in 1906) were funded by heirs to the fortune of 19th century magnate

William Fletcher Weld William Fletcher Weld (April 15, 1800 – December 12, 1881) was an American shipping magnate during the Age of Sail, Golden Age of Sail and a member of the prominent Weld family. He later invested in railroads and real estate. Weld multiplied hi ...

In literature

Anderson Memorial Bridge is the site of Quentin Compson's suicide in William Faulkner's classic novel ''

The Sound and the Fury ''The Sound and the Fury'' is a novel by the American author William Faulkner. It employs several narrative styles, including stream of consciousness. Published in 1929, ''The Sound and the Fury'' was Faulkner's fourth novel, and was not immedi ...

.'' This is commemorated by a small brass plaque, the size of one brick, that is located on the brick wall of the eastern (Weld Boathouse) side of the bridge, just north of the middle of the bridge span, about eighteen inches from the ground in a small alcove. It reads:

QUENTIN COMPSON Drowned in the odour of honeysuckle. 1891–1910

References

{{Crossings navbox , structure = Crossings , place =

, bridge = Anderson Memorial Bridge , bridge signs = , upstream =

Eliot Bridge The Eliot Bridge is a bridge over the Charles River between Cambridge, Massachusetts and Allston, Boston, Massachusetts. It connects Soldiers Field Road in Allston with Gerry's Landing Road, Memorial Drive, Greenough Boulevard, and the Fres ...

, upstream signs = , downstream =

John W. Weeks Bridge The John W. Weeks Memorial Bridge, usually called the Weeks Footbridge or simply Weeks Bridge, is a pedestrian bridge over the Charles River, located four miles northwest of downtown Boston on the Harvard University campus. The bridge connects ...