JThe Jones Bridge, formerly known as the Puente de España, crosses the Pasig River and connects Manila's Binondo and Santa Cruz districts with the city's business district. Today, it is considered the oldest bridge in the Philippines.
Initially, the bridge, consisting of 7 arched spans, was called Puerto Grande - it was built in 1632 by Spanish colonialists, and became the first bridge over the Pasig River. It was constructed of wood and connected the Binondo neighbourhood with the the old Manila neighbourhood of Intramuros, allowing residents to move more quickly and easily to get from one part of the city to another.
In its long history, the bridge has been destroyed many times by earthquakes and other natural disasters. In 1863, after another strong earthquake, the bridge began to be restored again - this time it was decided to widen its spans using brickwork, and the two central spans were made of iron. In the same year, the bridge was renamed Puente de España. After reconstruction, the bridge now has paths for pedestrians and for different types of transport - for horse-drawn carriages, for carts drawn by Asian buffaloes, and for trams.
In 1916, the bridge was again modernised, this time under the direction of the American government, and renamed - it was named in honour of Republican William Atkinson Jones, author of the Philippine Declaration of Independence of 1916. The last restoration work on the Jones Bridge was in the 1930s, when it was decorated in a neoclassical style.
Despite the fact that the Jones Bridge was once called the “king of Manila bridges,” it fell into oblivion in the 1980s, which is why it fell into disrepair. However, occasional small-scale restorations have so far to preserve its elegant neoclassical architecture.
