The Queens' Bridge is the earliest recorded work of James Essex the Younger. He later constructed the Essex Building 1756-60, which was intended to be part of a new building along the complete riverfront, replacing the 1460s part of the President's Lodge, but which was never completed. He is buried in St Botolph's, church of the parish in which Queens' lies. His father James Essex had also been a carpenter, doing work in many colleges, including the panelling of the Hall at Queens'. Rebuildings of the Queens' bridge By the 1860s, the original bridge of 1749 was badly decayed.
Photographs show many timbers patched, and the sides of the bridge apparently leaning inwards.
The use of the word repairing suggests that this was not a complete rebuilding, however, and maybe parts of the original bridge were retained and continued to decay, explaining why this version lasted less than 40 years. In 1905 the bridge was completely rebuilt, by the local builder William Sindall, in teak instead of oak. In this version of the bridge, the joints were fastened by nuts and bolts passing right through the joint, the bolt heads being on the internal elevations of the side arches, and therefore visible to people passing over the bridge. Previous versions of the bridge had the joints fastened by iron pins or screws driven in from the outer elevation, which were therefore not visible to the casual passer-by on the bridge, as the screws did not penetrate as far as the inner elevation. One may speculate that perhaps the sight of bolt heads where none had been seen before might have given rise to the myth of the failed re-assembly.