The Shakey Bridge is Gone!

In 2019, Cork’s riverside scene took on a rare and almost surreal quality as the beloved Shakey Bridge, or Daly’s Bridge, vanished for the first time since 1927. Locals strolling along the Lee were greeted not by the familiar wobbly walkway, but by its ornate white tower standing alone, flanked by colourful houses and lush gardens. The river, ever calm, mirrored the absence and the anticipation, while the city buzzed with stories of the bridge’s famous shake and the engineers’ promise to bring it back just as lively as ever.

The bridge is back now, and we visited recently. It still has its famous shake!

It’s the only suspension bridge in Cork City and the only surviving pedestrian suspension bridge of its kind and age in Ireland.


Apertureƒ/8
CameraILCE-7M3
Focal length57mm
ISO125
Shutter speed1/125s

Daly in Red

Daly’s Bridge, or the Shaky Bridge, near Fitzgerald Park was rebuilt and now sports a dazzling red lighting system!

Aperture ƒ/8
Camera ILCE-7M3
Focal length 16mm
ISO 400
Shutter speed 6s

The red cobbles

The new Shaky Bridge (Shakey Bridge?), or Daly’s Bridge, is a huge improvement over the old. The lighting makes it stand out, and it still has the shakes like the old one!

I love the cobbles on the ground nearby but the ugly concrete support under the walkway up to it leaves something to be desired. 🙁

Aperture ƒ/8
Camera ILCE-7M3
Focal length 16mm
ISO 320
Shutter speed 4s

The Shaky Bridge

The Shaky Bridge as it’s known locally or Daly’s Bridge named after one the people who financed it in the mid 1920’s.

November 2013.

Aperture ƒ/4.5
Camera Canon EOS 6D
Focal length 24mm
ISO 100
Shutter speed 1/40s

Strength in Numbers

One of the supports on the Shaky Bridge outside Fitzgerald Park in Cork.

Aperture ƒ/1.8
Camera Canon EOS 40D
Focal length 50mm
ISO 100
Shutter speed 1/4000s

David Rowell & Co

Do you know where Daly’s Bridge in Cork is? Sure you do. If you’ve lived in Cork you’ve probably walked across it even!

After one such excursion I snapped this photo to remind me to look up the printed name above. Turns out David Rowell & Co were a company, “that fabricated wrought iron and wire rope, built suspension footbridges, and structural steel frame buildings”. They traded from 1850 to 1970.
Among their accomplishments is Daly’s Bridge in Cork, or as it’s known locally, “the Shaky Bridge” near Fitzgerald’s Park.

So now you where Daly’s Bridge is!

Aperture ƒ/7.1
Camera Canon EOS 20D
Focal length 10mm
ISO 100
Shutter speed 1/100s