Senju Great Bridge, No. 103 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

Senju Great Bridge was not only the first bridge across the Sumida, but it also survived the longest, thanks to its sturdy construction. The bridge stood for close to three centuries—surely a record for wooden bridges—until it was washed away in the great flood of September 1885. About one quarter of all the daimyo in Japan used this bridge for their regular visits to Edo, and the shogun himself crossed it when visiting the graves of his ancestors at Nikkō, a journey of great symbolic importance.