One of Houdini's most spectacular outdoor escapes was jumping manacled from a bridge or pier and freeing himself while underwater. The escapes would draw thousands of onlookers and garner headlines in the papers. Houdini performed what he called "bridge jumps" in many of the cities he played throughout his career.Despite popular legend, Houdini never jumped from a bridge through a hole cut in the ice of a frozen river.
Below are some of Houdini's known bridge jumps.
Sept. 20, 1905: Battery Park, New York, NY
Nov. 27, 1906: Belle Isle Bridge, Detroit, MI
May 7, 1907: Weighlock Bridge, Rochester, NY
May 22, 1907: Seventh Street Bridge, Pittsburgh, PA
Aug. 28, 1907: Pier at foot of Washington St., San Fransisco, CA
Sept. 28, 1907: Westlake, Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 7, 1907: Spreckle’s Wharf, San Diego, CA
Oct. 13, 1907: Park Lake, Denver, CO
Nov. 17, 1907: Steamer J.S., New Orleans, LA
April 30, 1908: Harvard Bridge, Boston, MA
May 14, 1908: Market Street Bridge, Philadelphia, PA
June 10, 1908: Portland Bridge, Portland, ME.
June 15, 1908: Young’s Pier, Atlantic City, NJ
Sept. 5, 1908: Friedrichs Bridge, Berlin, Germany
Dec. 7, 1908: River Mersey, Liverpool, UK
Dec. 15, 1908: Edgbaston Reservoir, Birmingham, UK
April 7, 1909: River Seine, Paris, France
June 20, 1909: Earl Grey Dock, Dundee, UK
June 23, 1909: Marchioness of Bute Bridge, Dundee, UK
June 30, 1909: Tugboat John McConnachie, Aberdeen, UK
July 9, 1909: Steamer Glen Rosa, Brighton, UK
Aug. 17, 1909: Stonehouse Bridge, Plymouth, UK
Aug. 26, 1909: Western Esplanade, Southampton, UK
Feb. 17, 1910: Queens Bridge, Melbourne, Australia
April 14, 1910: Domain Municipal Baths, Sydney, Australia
May 30, 1911: Whitegate Lock, Halifax, UK
Aug. 21, 1911: Lake Michigan, Grant Park, IL
Sept. 6, 1911: Lachine Canal, Montreal, Canada
Sept. 12, 1911: Steamer Warwick, Providence, RI
April 3, 1912: Harlem River, New York, NY
Nov. 3, 1912: Weser Bridge, Bremen, Germany
Feb. 5, 1913: Waterlook Lake, Leeds, UK
March 5, 1913: Newport Bridge, Newport, UK
April 1, 1913: Swing Bridge, River Tyne, Newcastle, UK
Sept. 28, 1913: Dutzend Lake, Nuremburg, Germany.
April 26, 1914: Corporation Pier, Hull, UK
June 2, 1914: Admiralty Harbour, Dover, UK
Aug. 15, 1917: Garden Pier, Atlantic City, NJ
April 28, 1923: Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles, CA
