Hot Springs in Garland County, Arkansas — The American South (West South Central)
Bridge Street
| — | Hot Springs Central Avenue Historic District | — |
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 14, 2024
1. Bridge Street Marker
Bridge Street was once recognized by “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” as the busiest street in the world for its size and is now recognized as the site of the world’s shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The street sat in the midst of a busy retail district and was near bathhouses. At the hub of the Spa’s transportation network, it was located at the center of town.
Erected by City of Hot Springs.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Events • Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the Believe It or Not series list.
Location. 34° 30.585′ N, 93° 3.237′ W. Marker is in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in Garland County. It is on Central Avenue (State Highway 7) just north of Bridge Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is embedded in the sidewalk, beside a streetlamp post. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 711 Central Avenue, Hot Springs National Park AR 71901, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Arkansas’ Ouachita Mountains. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Gunfights and Brawls (within shouting distance of this marker); The Miss Arkansas Pageant (within shouting distance of this marker); Spencer's Corner (within shouting distance of this marker);
this page online
Also see . . . World's Shortest St. Patrick's Day Parade (Encyclopedia of Arkansas).
(By Steve Arrison) Excerpt: The World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade began in 2003 when a group of Hot Springs residents gathered in a pub on the city’s Bridge Street and began musing about ways to capitalize on the fact that the street had been named in Ripley’s Believe It or Not! during the 1950s and 1960s as the world’s shortest street in everyday use. The idea of holding a celebration on the ninety-eight-foot street in the heart of the historic city’s downtown area arose, and the approaching St. Patrick’s Day holiday emerged as an appropriate time to capitalize on Bridge Street’s reputation.(Submitted on January 5, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 14, 20242. Bridge Street MarkerLooking south along Central Avenue; Bridge Street intersects Central Avenue in the background.The First Ever First Annual World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade was held on March 17, 2004, with an open invitation for gag parade entries turning out more than fifty groups, including seventeen marching Irish wolfhounds, assorted marching bands, a marcher who boasted he would cover the “entire parade route while holding his breath,” and other similar farcical groups. More than 2,000 revelers turned out to watch the first parade and take part in the following pub crawl among downtown bars. An all-green fireworks display was detonated from the roof of a Bridge Street building. The Hot Springs fire marshal has estimated that, by 2016, the crowd had grown to nearly 30,000 people.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 14, 2024
3. Bridge Street — the entire street is 98 feet long!
Looking west from Malvern Avenue to Central Avenue; Bridge Street spans this one short block only!
Credits. This page was last revised on January 5, 2025. It was originally submitted on January 4, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 229 times since then and 35 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 5, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
