The current bridge dates to 1776, but it was not the first structure here. It replaced an earlier crossing called Arran Bridge, which had stood on the same site since 1683, making this particular stretch of river one of the longer-serving crossing points on the Liffey.

Arran Bridge was built in 1683 at a time when the north city was still developing into the residential and commercial quarter it would become over the following century. When that structure was replaced in 1776, Dublin was in the middle of a significant period of civic expansion, with the Wide Streets Commissioners reshaping much of the city's layout and ambition. The 1776 bridge, then, was part of a broader effort to modernise the city's infrastructure, though the choice to build on the same site maintained a continuity of function that stretched back almost a century. The sources recording this history, including works by Dillon Cosgrave, Maher, and Tutty, place this crossing within a well-documented tradition of Liffey bridge building.

The bridge sits within the north city area and is accessible on foot as part of any walk along the Liffey quays. The quayside footpaths on both banks allow a close look at the structure itself. Those interested in the archaeology of the site should note that the 1776 build effectively sits atop or immediately adjacent to the footprint of the 1683 original, meaning the ground and river bed here carry the traces of nearly three and a half centuries of continuous use as a crossing point. It is the kind of place that rewards a pause rather than a crossing made in haste.