Rhodesia Philately: 1969 Bridges of Rhodesia – 2/6d Birchenough Bridge

This stamp depicts one of the most well known of Rhodesian Bridges — the Birchenough Bridge which crosses the Sabi River 71 miles from Umtali on the road to Fort Victoria. It was a gift to the people of Southern Rhodesia from the Beit Trust and was named after the Chairman of the Beit Railway Trust, Sir Harry Birchenough. The single arch of the bridge rises 280 ft. above the river and has a span of 1,080 ft. The bridge, which weighs 1,500 tons, was designed by Sir Ralph Freeman on the lines of his bridge over Sydney Harbour and was built by Messrs. Dorman Long Limited of Great Britain at a cost of £152,070. The bridge was opened by Sir Herbert Stanley, Governor of Southern Rhodesia, in 1935.