How London Bridge Became Arizona’s Unlikeliest Landmark for Nation’s 250th Anniversary

Dismantled in its home and rebuilt in Arizona, London Bridge has defined Lake Havasu City for more than 50 years.

A woman marvels at the red light illuminating the 1831 London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., on June 5, 2026. Allan Stein/The Epoch Times

LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz.—London Bridge wasn’t falling down. It was sinking, inch by inch, into the River Thames.

Heavy traffic drove it deeper into the muddy riverbed—about an inch every eight years. By the mid-20th century, one side already sat lower than the other, a slow tilt marking the end of its working life.