This bridge was built in the 1970's.

The Odessa legend of this bridge is that the mayor's wife missed her mother, who lived across the ravine. Feeling sorry for his wife, the mayor built this bridge.

Facing toward the port there is a large orange bridge.

Old Soviet-era photo of mother and law bridge,
notice bride and groom

Gogolya street was originally named Nadejdinskaya. Before the Soviet Revolution, it was renamed in honor of the great Russian author Gogol. Gogol visited Odessa twice, and both times he resided on this street, at both number 11 and 15 (See below).

While in Odessa Gogol wrote the second section of "Dead Souls". The first section was written mostly when he periodically lived in Rome during the late 1830s and early 1840s. Part two was written between 1842-1852, but while visiting Jerusalem in 1848 he was persuaded by a religious figure that he should destroy the manuscript, which he did in 1852. Gogol planned a third part of "Dead Souls", but it was never written.

Gogol's "Dead Souls" is a tragic book that mocks the stupidity and inefficiency of the czarist government. Its revolutionary ideas feed fire to an already increasingly angry and discontent public frustrated at czarist rule.

Like Alexander Pushkin, Gogol often visited the Rishelieu institute and attended the theater. Gogol met the famous poet in 1831, and Pushkin gave him the idea for his comedy "The Inspector General". The play was finished in 1835 and published in 1836. Gogol helped produce it for theater, where it was performed on stage with Czar Nicolas I in attendance. The drama mocked the wrongs of government officials. Gogol defended it from critics by claiming that even misguided bureaucratic officials were capable of altering their behavior and actions. Nevertheless, the criticism leveled against him caused Gogol to leave Russia and reside abroad for more than ten years.