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Cowes Floating Bridge

Chain ferries in the United KingdomCowesEast CowesFerry transport in EnglandFerry transport on the Isle of Wight
Cowes Floating Bridge, Isle of Wight, UK
Cowes Floating Bridge, Isle of Wight, UK

The Cowes Floating Bridge is a vehicular chain ferry which crosses the River Medina on the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England. The ferry crosses the tidal river from East Cowes to Cowes. The first floating bridge between the two towns was established in 1859 and the crossing is one of the few remaining that has not been replaced by a physical bridge. The service is owned and operated by the Isle of Wight Council, which has run it since 1901. Prior to ownership by the local authority the service was run by The Floating Bridge Company and The Steam Packet Company (Red Funnel). The ferry currently used is named No. 6, the sixth to be owned by the Isle of Wight Council, and ninth in total. It was built in 2017 and can carry up to 20 cars. The Cowes floating bridge remains the only way to cross the River Medina between the towns without taking a ten-mile trip via Newport. The current vessel was installed on 14 May 2017, but after a string of technical issues the service was suspended by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, and a passenger-only replacement service provided by a small launch. After several months of service suspension and intermittent operation, full service finally resumed early in 2018.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Cowes Floating Bridge (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Cowes Floating Bridge
Ferry Road,

Geographical coordinates (GPS) Address Nearby Places
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Wikipedia: Cowes Floating BridgeContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 50.757694444444 ° E -1.2914722222222 °
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Address

Ferry Road
PO32 6TS , Osborne
England, United Kingdom
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Cowes Floating Bridge, Isle of Wight, UK
Cowes Floating Bridge, Isle of Wight, UK
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Nearby Places

Frank James Hospital
Frank James Hospital

The Frank James Hospital is a currently closed hospital in Adelaide Grove, East Cowes on the Isle of Wight. It was sold by the NHS Trust in 2002 and since then, it has had ownership issues, which has led to its vandalism and disrepair. The building is currently on the endangered buildings list for the United Kingdom. It has a central block with two projecting wings and a verandah to the ground floor on all sides. It is built of red brick, with a tiled roof and has been Grade II listed since 1979.The building was constructed in 1893, as a home for retired seamen and was originally called the Frank James Memorial Home. It was commissioned by William and Arthur James as a memorial to their brother, Frank Linsly James, eldest son of the New York entrepreneur Daniel James and his wife Sophia, who ran the British arm of their company Phelps Dodge from Liverpool. The building was designed in a Dutch Style by Somers Clarke. In 1903, the home was transformed into a cottage hospital, with its running costs paid for by charitable donations. It was eventually absorbed into the National Health Service in 1948, before finally closing in 2002. Between then and now, it has been laying empty and gradually deteriorating. In March 2012, an action group was formed called the "Friends of Frank James", with the aim of saving and preserving the Frank James Hospital for future generations. They have had the support of Isle of Wight MP Andrew Turner. The group's aim is to push for action, to prevent the building being lost forever.