Old San Ignacio Bridge

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• | History

In the year 1742, for almost fifty days, the San Pedro River ran uncontrollably through Aguascalientes without leaving any ford through which any cart or daring horseman could cross. Due to this, the always concerned order of the Jesuits decided to build a bridge that could alleviate this problem of lack of communication with the inhabitants of the town. Construction began in 1743. By the rainy season of 1745, the first of the nine vaults that make up the nine arches of the work had already been completed.

The bridge was almost finished for its inauguration in 1759 (all that was left was to raise the parapets, some touch-ups and level the paving of the road), when on September 29 a waterspout of biblical proportions caused the rising San Pedro River to bring down the structure.

The Jesuits, dismayed by the tragedy, did not give up and began reconstruction a couple of years later; but the work was again left unfinished when the religious order was expelled from America in 1767.

The construction was resumed by the government of the town of Aguascalientes in 1780, thirteen years later. This new building process was very slow due to lack of resources and ended in December 1797, so the total time elapsed for its completion was 54 years. In this last stage, the work was under the direction of the famous builder Don Nicéforo Ornelas, a master builder who had also worked on the construction of the Cieneguilla Hacienda in that region, a little less than 38 kilometers southwest of Aguascalientes.

The magnificent work carried out by Ornelas has been demonstrated over time, since the structure has resisted countless river floods for more than two centuries that have tested its solidity.

The San Ignacio Bridge, in honor of San Ignacio de Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order, is located northwest of Aguascalientes, at the exit to the Hacienda de San Ignacio, on the way to Jesús María. It serves to cross the legendary San Pedro River, which runs to the west of the hydro-warm city. In colonial times, it was a key passage between Nueva Galicia (Jalisco) and the important mining city of Zacatecas. Decades ago, a few hundred meters from its eastern bank, a foundry was established, which is why it also began to be called La Foundción bridge.

The work is made up of nine semicircular arches, with a length of almost 85 meters and a clear track width of 3.85 meters. The three main arches placed in the center are semicircular and are almost 5 meters wide; while the remaining six, relief for the avenues, are irregular and smaller in size (between 3 and 3.5 meters clear).

In recent years, both the bridge and the surrounding area have undergone restoration work based on the original design; today this space has become an attractive place to walk and connect a little with the history of Aguascalientes.