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Discover the Story Behind London’s Hungerford Footbridge Skateboard Graveyard
London, as we all know, is a city of tales and history enveloping structures as grand as the Buckingham Palace or as minute as the stone cobbled streets. Today, however, we shed light on an often overlooked sight on the iconic Thames River—the Skateboard Graveyard at Hungerford Footbridge.
Hungerford Footbridge, a famed part of the London Sightseeing Taxi Tours, carries a striking and sadly tragic history which has turned it into an unusual memorial site. When you come aboard the London Sightseeing Taxi Tour https://londonsightseeingtaxitours.com/product/london-sightseeing-taxi-tour-group , let your eyes linger amidst the river and you might catch sight of this poignant memorial.
Hungerford Footbridge And Its Gruesome Past
For most of London’s tourists and even some locals, the sight of colourful broken skateboards may seem peculiar, barely creating a blip in their consciousness. But behind this unassuming sight, is a tale of a young skater’s brutal murder that shook the city.
The Hungerford Footbridge, whose origins take us back to 1845, has gone through the hands of the prominent engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and later Sir John Hawkshaw. The tragic story, however, is associated with the walkways of the footbridge. Timothy Baxter, a 24-year-old skater, was murdered in a drug-fueled assault on these very walkways, an incident which turned the bridge into a silent beacon of remembrance.
The Golden Jubilee Bridges and Timothy Baxter
The decision to replace the narrow walkways was hurried by Baxter’s gruesome murder, leading to the creation of the Golden Jubilee Bridges. While officially named to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II’s 50 years as ruling monarch, the bridge is also an indirect tribute to the skater’s untimely death.
In proximity to the bridge lies the Southbank Skatepark, where sometime in 2008, the first of the broken skateboards made their appearance, entangled in the Hungerford Footbridge’s support structure. The trend spread, and a multitude of skateboards joined them in a seemingly spontaneous act of remembrance for Baxter.
The Ghost in the Graveyard – A Tribute to Timothy Baxter
Although it is uncertain whether the Skateboard Graveyard initially began as an intentional homage to Baxter, time has imbued it with a sense of sorrow and reflection. The first skateboard not showing up until almost a decade after his demise adds a layer of mystique to the story.
Every once in a while, the city council removes the boards. But the natural state of the graveyard is preserved later with the additions of more broken skateboards by mysterious benefactors.
A New Stopover for London Sightseeing Taxi Tours
The Skateboard Graveyard at the Hungerford Footbridge now offers a poignant memorandum of a young life cut short and the resilience of the skater community. Treating it as a sacred peek into the past, London Sightseeing Taxi Tours https://londonsightseeingtaxitours.com/product/london-sight-seeing-tour/ pays homage to this unique location as part of its comprehensive city tours.
Explore the city’s nooks and crannies through our holistic London Sightseeing Taxi Tours and discover the hidden narratives that the city holds. As history intertwines with the present to form a fascinating weave of culture, symbols, and tributes, discover how unnoticed landmarks like the Skateboard Graveyard form the essence of London’s captivating charm.”