British Iron Bridges

Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Northumberland, Durham

Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk

Britain before the Roman conquest (43 AD) was covered by virtually impenetrable forest relieved by the occasional heath, wetland or moor. Overland travel was along the ancient tracks of the bare uplands such as the Icknield Way under the ridge of the Chilterns or the track on the North Downs later known as the “Pilgrim’s Way” to Canterbury. By far the most practical way to get around was by water along the coast and up or down the many rivers. The only bridges dating from that period were of the “clapper” type or simple wooden ones.

The Romans began building the first British roads to consolidate their conquest in 43 AD, but they invested in only a few bridges. At key crossings, like Cambridge, a number of roads from different directions converged there, just to take advantage of the reliable bridge crossing. Although a direct route from A to B might have been many miles shorter, convenience was trumped by the certainty of being able to cross the river at the bridge head. Fully half of the north/south Roman roads converged on the wooden bridge at London. Other important Roman bridges were located at Rochester and at Newcastle. (Trevelyan p. 19)

When the Roman Legions left Britain (410 AD), their roads and bridges were abandoned. The stone causeways subsided or were used as quarries. “From driving roads they declined into pack-horse tracks, finally disappearing for the most part to moor and plough-land.” (Trevelyan p. 46) The turmoil of the next 700 years as various indigenous and invading factions vied for control of Britain meant that travelers who valued their goods and their lives avoided overland travel whenever possible and fell back into the habit of going by sea from one coastal town to another or by barge up the navigable rivers. For almost 500 years, no bridges were built except those of the most temporary and rudimentary kind.

During the early Middle Ages, the religious orders took up the challenge of building bridges. The Church, a wealthy international organization with communication needs and widespread commercial enterprises, needed good roads just as much as had the Roman Empire. The Freres Pontifes aided travelers and provided lodging, ferry service, and even bridges. Saint Benezet, an extraordinary engineer, was sanctified for a number of miracles including building the famous bridge at Avignon which was completed in 1185 and was so well designed and constructed that even after over 800 years and epic floods, four of the original 22 arches are still standing. In England, the Cistercian order was the foremost but not the only religious order which, needing access to its many business enterprises and vast properties, included the building of roads and bridges in its charitable activities.

Wealthy merchants of 14th century England would occasionally heed the urging of “Piers Plowman” and finance the building of a local bridge in the same spirit as they would endow an alms house. The Bishop of Durham offered 40 days of indulgence to those who would finance the repairing of Botyton Bridge. (Engineering in History, Kirby et al p. 109)

No one knows [as of when this was written] the exact age of the old wooden London Bridge, but it was standing in 994 when Ethelred defended it against the Danes. In 1176 Peter of Colechurch, “priest and engineer” began work on its stone replacement. After his death, King John appointed the French engineer Brother Isembert as his replacement. This London Bridge was completed in 1209 and was well enough constructed and maintained to survive the next 600 years (despite several fires and reconfigurations of its superstructure) until it was again replaced in 1831. At that time the original Roman black oak pilings were discovered, perfectly preserved by their submersion and with their original wrought iron “shoe” of a type only the Romans could forge.

Even as late as the Tudor dynasty, there were still very few bridges and the Roman roads were in such terrible condition that transportation of those goods that did not go by water could only be carried by pack animals since the roads were impassable to wheeled vehicles in bad weather. Travelers had to go miles out of their way to cross at the only available bridge when floods made a convenient ford unsafe. Whole regions of Britain were virtually without roads at all, such as Scotland, Wales and Cornwall. People and goods there traveled overland by foot or by horse. As always, the preference was to travel by water.

Since the inland cities were dependent on the barge traffic that carried goods up and down the rivers in trans-shipment from the coastal port, they resisted the building of bridges whose piers would be an impediment to the waterways. When high water made the fords unusable, the ferryman would come to the rescue. Since no point in England is more than seventy miles from the coast (Trevelyan p.340), this transportation situation was reasonably satisfactory until the third quarter of the 17th century and there was little demand for new bridges until then.

With the peace that followed the Settlement Act of 1689, which closed the painful chapter of the Civil War, English tradesmen and merchants could look forward to prosperity at last. This Act “led not only to a new and wider liberty than had ever before been known in Britain, but to a renewed vigor and efficiency in the body politic and in the government of the Empire. … From the external weakness that had characterized England in the 17th century the country rose … to the acknowledged leadership of the world, in arms, colonies, and commerce, in political and religious freedom and intellectual vigour.” (Trevelyan p. 472-3) The next two centuries would be a golden age for business of all kinds.

There would be an explosion of road and bridge building throughout the British Isles to meet a new demand for the efficient and safe transportation of raw materials and manufactured goods. Industries that had been rural and local, suddenly would became national and international in scope. The industrial revolution would be born and in its early stages, it was based on iron.

One could make the case that it began with the building of the first substantial iron bridge. This first iron bridge launched a revolution in bridge building; spurred the concept of civil engineering as a distinct discipline; encouraged the development of innovative ways of working iron that led to its use in many new applications which in turn led to the steam engine, the textile factories, the rail roads and even ships being built entirely of iron.

Warwickshire, Northamptonshire, Leiscestershire, Gloucestershire

2 ABBEY BRIDGE 1872-3 Paisley NS485 638

3 ABELOUR BRIDGE 1863 Carron Iron Wks Banffshire NJ 263 421

3a ABERCHALDER BRIDGE Invernesshire HEW 888 NH 337 036

4 ABERDALGIE VIADUCT

4a ABERGELDIE CASTLE BR 1885

5 ALBERT BRIDGE 1879-71 Glascow NS 584 644

6 AUCHINDREAN BRIDGE 1865 over River Broom

6a AUCHINSTARRY BASIN, Forth & Clyde Canal (bridge ?)

6b BALGAY HILL BR

6c BALHARY HSE LENTICULAR FT BR @ ALYTH (PRIVATE)

7 BALLCORACH over River Avon NJ 155 265

8 BALLATER SUSPENSION BR 1892 at Polhollick Aberdeenshire N0 343 966

8a BALLINDALLOCH RR VIADUCT 18673

9 BALMORAL BRIDGE 1854-7 Brunel N0 263 949

9a BALMORAL CASTLE SUS. BR 1924

10 BELL PLACE FT BR Edinburgh NT248 750

10a BLAIRGOWRIE BR @ Raffney 1856 still there ???

11 BONHILL BRIDGE 1898 NS 396 798

11a BONNINGTON LINN FT BR

11b BRIDGE OF TILT/TILT VIADUCT @ Blair Atholl

11c BURNGREEN PEACE PARK BR. nr. Kilsyth, Glascow

12 CALEDONIAN CANAL 1822 Telford NN162 826

13 CAMPUS O’MAY 1905 over the Dee Aberdeenshire N0421 977

14 CARRON RR BRIDGE 1863 Lower Spey NJ 224 412

14a CHINESE BR TAYMOUTH CASTLE

15 CLYDE STREET SUSPENSION FT BR early 1800’s Glascow

15a COATBRIDGE RR BR Summerlee St. nr. Glascow

16 CORRIESCHALLOCH SUS BR 1867 Fowler NH 203 780

17 CRAIGELLACHIE BR 1813 Telford Abelour Banffshire R. Spey NJ 285 452

17a CRATHIE BRIDGE 1856 Brunel at Clatt Aberdeenshire N0 262 941

17b CRATHIE SUSPENSION BR 1834 N0 267 943

18 DALKEITH RR BR mid 19th c NT327 670 (also one @ Duddingston ?)

19 DEMAMOCK RR BR. 1858 NS 613 625

19a DINGWALL BR, Ferry rd. north of Inverness

20 DRYMAN BRIDE Mid 19th c Kelty Water NS 535 963

21 DUMFRIES SUSPENSION FT BR 1875 NX973 757

21a DUNBANE STA BR nr Stirling

22a/b DURRIS BRIDGE 1862 NO 739 958 + 1854 bridge

22c/d DUTHIE PARK FT BRIDGES (2) ABERDEEN

23a/b/c EDINBURGH & GLASCOW UNION CANAL (3 aqueducts)

23d FETTERESSO CASTLE BR, Kincardine (RR ?)

23e FOCHABERS/OLD SPEY BR 1852

24 FOULDEN BRIDGE 1837 over WhiteadderNT 921 546

24a FRIOCKHEIM BR nr Dundee (RR ? no river)

24b GAIRNSHIEL BR nr Ballater

24c GARMOUTH/SPEY VIADUCT 1888

24e GARVE STA FT BR 1908

24f GLENNDIE BRIDGE @ Towie (castle private) no br in photos: @Towie Mill Town?)

25 CHAPEL OF GAIOCH BRIDGE mid 19th c Inveramsay NJ 741 246

26 GENERAL’S WELL SUSPEN./CANTILEVER FT BR 1853 Inverness NH661 436

27 GENISLA SCHOOL SUSPENSION BR. 1824 Kirkton of Glenisla NO 213 603

27a GLENKINDIE BR.

27b GORGIE RD RR BR. Edinburgh

27c GRASSMARKET/HERIOT BR @ Edinburgh

28 GRIEG STREET SUSPENSION BRIDGE 1881 over R. Ness, Inverness

28a HEATHERSLAW MILL BR nr Kelso

28b INFIRMARY BR Inverness 1879

28c INVERBROOM BR Croftown

28d JUSTIN HAUGH BR./AQUEDUCT

29 ISLANDADD BRIDGE 1851 @ Kilmartin Argyll NR804 923

30 KALEMOUTH SUSPENSION BRIDGE 1820-30 NT709 274

30a KELVIN BR. @ Grt Western Rd Glascow

31 KINTORE BRIDGE 1882 @ Kindore, Aberdeenshire NJ 796 162

32 KNOCKANDO BRIDGE mid 19th c @ Pitchroy NJ 173 379

33 LANGHOLM SUSPENSION BRIDGE mid 19th c @ Langholm

33b LONGNIDDRY STA FT BR east of Edinburgh

33a LINLATHEN HSE ESTATE BR

34 MEAVAIG BRIDGE late 19th c @ Harris NB 101 063

35 MELROSE SUSPENSIOIN FT BRIDGE 1826 NT545 346

METHLICK BRIDGE 1844 NJ857 375

36a MORNINGSIDE RR STATION FT BR Edinburgh

37 MOY SWING BRIDG 1812 Telford over Caledonian Canal NN 162 826

38 BRIDGE OF NEWE 1858 @ Strathdon NJ 375 121

38a PARK BRIDGE 1854 @ Durres NO 797 982

39 PATRICK BRIDGE 1877-8 Glascow NS 565 664

40 PEBBLES FOOT BRIDGE Mid 19th c NT252 407

41 PETERCULTER-ST. DEENICH SUSPENSION BR. 1836 @ Cults NJ897 027

41a PLODDA FALLS FT BR @ Tomich nr Inverness

41b POLHOLLICK BR 1892 nr Ballater

42 PORTLAND SUSPENSION FT BR 1851 over R Clyde Glascow NS589 647

43 ROTHIEMAY BRIDGE mid 19th c @ Rothiemay NJ 548 481

44 ST ANDREWS SUSPENSION BRIDGE 1853 Glascow NS600 640

45 SHIN VIADUCT @ Criech

46 SOUTH ESK VIADUCT 1824 @ Montrose NO 213 603

47 TANGLAND BRIDGE 1864 @ Tangland Ford, Methlick Aberdeenshire NJ 888 361

48 TAY RR BRIDGE 1882-7 @ Dundee NO 395 263

49 UNION SUSPENSION BR 1820 @ Hutton/Horncliffe over R. Tweed NT 934 511

50 VICTORIA BRIDGE 1900 @ Haddington NT518 739

51 WELLINGTON SUSPENSION BR 1829-31 @ Aberdeen NJ 943 049

52 WOODLAND CRESCENT BR @ Grantown (not in satellite photo)

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