Skerne Bridge | |
|---|---|
 South side, with original arches flanked by later buttresses | |
| Coordinates | 54°32′4.0″N 1°33′2.2″W / 54.534444°N 1.550611°W |
| OS grid reference | NZ 29177 15558 |
| Carries | Railway |
| Crosses | River Skerne |
| Locale | Darlington |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Arch |
| Material | Stone |
| Longest span | 39 ft 6 in (12.04 m)[1] |
| No. of spans | 3 |
| History | |
| Designer | Ignatius Bonomi |
| Constructed by | Francis Peacock, of Yarm |
| Opened | 27 September 1825 |
| Statistics | |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
| Official name | Skerne Bridge |
| Designated | 7 December 2021 |
| Reference no. | 1475481[2] |
| Location | |
 | |
The Skerne Bridge is a railway bridge over the River Skerne in Darlington, County Durham. Built in 1825 for the Stockton and Darlington Railway, it carried the first train on the opening day, 27 September 1825. It is still in use, being the oldest railway bridge in continuous use in the world. It is a Grade I listed building.
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Transcription
History
The Stockton and Darlington Railway had to cross the Skerne River, and it was originally intended that George Stephenson should erect a stone and iron bridge. However, when the similar Gaunless Bridge he had designed had to be rebuilt after suffering flood damage, the railway directors told him to consult Ignatius Bonomi. Bonomi designed a stone arch bridge, with a single arch spanning the river and two smaller arches over the paths either side.[3] It was built by Francis Peacock of Yarm.[1] The bridge famously featured on the opening day of the railway, 27 September 1825, when Locomotion No. 1 crossed it with a train of coal and passengers. Shortly before the opening, in August 1825, the Revd John Skinner sketched the bridge as it was originally built.[4] The pride taken in the bridge is suggested by its appearance on the railway's share certificates.[5]
Traffic over the bridge increased far beyond the S&DR's expectations, and by 1828 the embankments leading to the bridge were showing serious damage. In 1829 the railway engaged John Falcus Carter of Heighington to repair it. He added curved flanking walls, holding back earth ramparts, that shored up Bonomi's failing embankments.[6] The railway survived and prospered. To celebrate their fiftieth year in 1875, they commissioned John Dobbin to paint the original opening day. He, assuming that little about the bridge had changed, portrayed it as it appeared in 1875–complete with curved retaining walls–in his reconstruction of the 1825 opening scene.[3] A similar error occurs in Robert Thurston's A history of the growth of the steam engine.
At a later date, Carter's flank walls have been hidden by additional heavier walls of rustic stone that do not match the original bridge.[6] At some point before 1897, the bridge was widened on the north side to carry four tracks. The widened trackbed has since been removed, since 1967, leaving only the stone piers, and a single track still using the original arches.[7][8][a]
Renovation and commemoration
On 19 June 1970 the bridge was listed as Scheduled monument number 1002331.[7] Ahead of the 195th Anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington railway in 2020, Network Rail (who own the railway infrastructure) cleaned the stonework, removing plant growth and cutting back the surrounding greenery to make the bridge more visible.[9] A public information board explains the history of the bridge. The bridge has also featured on the UK's £5 note (in its post-1829 form).[10] The ICE's Panel for Historical Engineering Works has listed it as HEW 151.[11] The National Transport Trust has marked it with a Red Wheel plaque.[12] Having carried the railway over the River Skerne since 1825, under the Stockton and Darlington, North Eastern, and London and North Eastern railways, and British Rail, Railtrack and (currently) Network Rail, the Skerne Bridge is the oldest railway bridge in continuous use in the world.[9]
On 7 December 2021, Historic England gave it a new designation as a Grade I listed building, in recognition of its architectural and historic interest.[2][13]
The bridge is a short distance from Head of Steam, which occupies the former station building of North Road railway station. Until March 2021, this museum housed Locomotion No. 1, the locomotive that pulled the inaugural train over Skerne Bridge. The locomotive has been moved to the eponymously named Locomotion in preparation for the bicentenary celebrations of the S&DR in 2025.[14]
Gallery
-
Opening of Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825 (excerpt) by John Dobbin (painted 1875). -
Preferential Share of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, issued 24. September 1858 -
The post-1829 Skerne Bridge used in an image of the 1825 opening in Robert Thurston's book. -
The flat stonework of the original arches contrasts with the rustic stone of the later flanking walls. A public information board is in the foreground. -
The piers are left from the widening of the bridge on the north side.
Notes
- ^ An 1897 map shows the wider bridge, as does a 1967 photograph.
- ^ a b Rennison 1996.
- ^ a b Historic England & 1475481.
- ^ a b NorthenEcho 2017.
- ^ NHLEpics 2021.
- ^ HEAudit 2019, p. 14.
- ^ a b SDR1825 2021.
- ^ a b Historic England & 1002331.
- ^ InfoBoard 2021.
- ^ a b NetworkRail 2020.
- ^ NorthenEchoPic4 2017.
- ^ ICE 2015.
- ^ NTTSkerneBridge 2021.
- ^ BBC 2021.
- ^ NorthenEcho 2021.
References
- "Historic England highlights windmill, mud walls and sports hall". BBC News. 15 December 2021.
- "The story of Skerne Bridge - a somewhat mysterious fixture of Darlington's railway history which has been revamped after years of neglect". The Northern Echo. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
- "IN CIRCULATION: The Skerne Bridge on the old £5 note". The Northern Echo. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
- "WATCH: Locomotion No 1 arrives in Shildon". The Northern Echo. 7 March 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- "Where's the world's oldest rail bridge in continuous use?". Network Rail. 29 September 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
- Historic England, "Skerne Railway bridge, 320m south east of Darlington Railway Museum, Darlington (1002331)", National Heritage List for England, archived from the original on 11 June 2021, retrieved 11 June 2021
- Rennison, Robert William (1996). Civil engineering heritage. Northern England (2nd ed.). London: Thomas Telford Publishing. ISBN 0-7277-2518-1.
- Historic England, "Skerne Bridge (1475481)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 15 December 2021
- "Skerne Bridge, Non Civil Parish - 1475481 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk.
- "John Carter and the Saving of the Skerne Bridge" (PDF). Friends of the Stockton & Darlington Railway. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- Skerne Bridge. Route of the 1825 Stockton and Darlington Railway (Public information board). Footpath south west of Skerne Bridge: Darlington Borough Council.
- "THE ROUTE OF THE S&DR 1825: The Darlington Circular Stockton & Darlington Railway Walk No.5" (PDF). Friends of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
- "The 1825 Stockton & Darlington Railway: Historic Environment Audit Appendix 5. Darlington to Goosepool (Stockton Council boundary)" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Archaeo-Environment for Durham County Council, Darlington Borough Council and Stockton Council. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
- "Heritage Locations". www.nationaltransporttrust.org.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
- "Panel For Historical Engineering Works : Skerne Bridge". Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). 13 February 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
This page was last edited on 26 March 2024, at 15:13