Jump to content

Wikipedia:Main Page history/2016 January 16

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Welcome to Wikipedia,
5,056,907 articles in English

From today's featured article

Wandsworth Bridge crosses the River Thames in west London. It carries the A217 road between Battersea, near Wandsworth Town Station, in the London Borough of Wandsworth on the south side of the river, and Sands End and Parsons Green in Hammersmith and Fulham on the north side. The first bridge on the site was a toll bridge, built in 1873 in the expectation that the western terminus of the Hammersmith and City Railway would shortly be built on the north bank. The terminus was not built, and problems with drainage on the approach road made access to the bridge difficult for vehicles. Wandsworth Bridge was commercially unsuccessful, and in 1880 it was taken into public ownership and made toll-free. Narrow and too weak to carry buses, the bridge was demolished in 1937. The present bridge, an unadorned steel cantilever bridge, was opened in 1940. It was painted in dull shades of blue as camouflage against air raids, a colour scheme it retains. Wandsworth Bridge is one of the busiest bridges in London, carrying over 50,000 vehicles daily. (Full article...)

Did you know...

Church of St George the Exiler
Church of St George the Exiler

In the news

Hurricane Alex
Hurricane Alex on January 14

On this day...

January 16: Mattu Pongal (Tamils, 2016)

Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
Longleat

Longleat is an English stately home and the seat of the Marquesses of Bath. Built in the 16th century by Sir John Thynne and designed by Robert Smythson, it is a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house. The house is set in 1,000 acres (400 ha) of parkland landscaped by Capability Brown, with 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of let farmland and 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of woodland, which includes a Center Parcs holiday village. It was the first stately home to open to the public, and also claims the first safari park outside Africa.

Photograph: W. Lloyd MacKenzie

Other areas of Wikipedia

  • Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
  • Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
  • Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
  • Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
  • Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
  • Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other projects: