The River Tees forms the traditional border between Yorkshire and County Durham, passes through the Teesside Urban area built-up area, and has many crossings. The natural low-lying landscape of the surrounding landscape together with the development of shipping on the water way has led a number of unusual bridges being built.[1]
History of crossings edit
An early crossing of the Tees was made by the Romans, with the construction of a bridge at Piercebridge, along with a corresponding fortress.[2] The bridge was built on the route of Dere Street, and as a result it likely saw a great deal of military traffic going between the fortress at York and the northern frontier.[3] It was first built in wood around 90 AD, before being rebuilt in stone, possibly when the first bridge washed away. The use of the bridge may of continued into the sub-Roman period.[2]
Crossings of the Tees continued to be important in the journey from north to south, and vice versa, along the east coast, during the medieval period.[4] During the 13th century it was described as "the major obstacle to speedy travel out of the diocese of Durham southwards", with the contemporary fords, bridges and ferries proving particularly inconvenient in the winter period.[5] This included the Great North Road, for which the Croft Bridge was built in the 13th or 14th centuries. Yarm bridge was built around 1400, by bishop Skirlaw.[4]
In 1771 a major flood on the Tees, along with others in the North-East, caused major damage to the river's bridges, completely destroying some. The Wynch Bridge, Supposedly the oldest suspension bridge in Europe, dating from 1741, was lifted from its moorings. The bridge in Gilmonby was recorded as being destroyed after having only been fully operational for 3 years. On the other hand, The medieval Yarm bridge was not affected by the flood, despite every other building in the town being damaged.[6]
With the industrialisation of the area through the 19th century, many new bridges where needed closer to the ports mouth.[5] When the Stockton and Darlington railway, first opened in 1825, it was realised that the staiths at Stockton where two small to export the desired amount of coal. The decision was made to start exporting closer to the rivers mouth on the other bank, at Port Darlington (later Middlesbrough). This required the building of the first suspension railway bridge.[a] This moved the commercial centre of gravity of Teesside further down stream, where many future bridges would be built.[7]
By the end of that century there were 21 principal firms on and adjacent to the Tees in the Stockton and Thornaby area, with 36 firms in the Middlesbrough area. This led to the development of two of the most famous bridges on the river, The Transporter Bridge, in 1911, and the Newport Bridge, in 1934, both trying to balance the needs of travellers across the river with shipping up and down it.[5]
List edit
The following is a list of crossings of the River Tees, heading downstream, from source to its mouth in the North Sea. This including road, rail, pipe and foot/cycle bridges and fords.[8][9]
Source to Barnard Castle edit
Barnard Castle to Piercebridge edit
Crossing | Photo | Opened | Notes | Coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|
Deepdale Aqueduct | 1893 | Victorian footbridge that also carries a pipe for water over the River[17] | 54°32′45″N 1°55′50″W / 54.54583°N 1.93056°W[18][19] | |
Barnard Castle Bridge | 1569 | A67 road | 54°32′34″N 1°55′38″W / 54.54278°N 1.92722°W[20][21][22] | |
Thorngate Footbridge | 1881 | 54°32′21″N 1°55′33″W / 54.53917°N 1.92583°W[23] | ||
Abbey Bridge | 1773 | Unclassified and unnamed road linking Abbey Rd to Westwick Road | 54°31′47″N 1°53′57″W / 54.52972°N 1.89917°W[24] | |
Whorlton Bridge | July 1831[25] | The bridge had been started at this location before October 1829, but a flood on the 13th of that month destroyed all progress. John Green of Newcastle was tasked with the redesign, which he based on his previous work on the Scotswood suspension bridge.[25] | 54°31′35″N 1°50′12″W / 54.52639°N 1.83667°W[26][27][28] | |
Winston Bridge | 1763[29] | Originally built as part of a toll road from Staindrop to Richmond, and now caries the B6274. Designed by armature architect Sir Thomas Robinson.[29] | 54°32′29″N 1°46′52″W / 54.54139°N 1.78111°W[30][31] | |
West Tees Railway Bridge | 1856 | Part of the former Darlington and Barnard Castle Railway.[32] | 54°33′3″N 1°45′27″W / 54.55083°N 1.75750°W | |
Gainford Railway Bridge | 1856 | 54°32′52″N 1°44′47″W / 54.54778°N 1.74639°W | ||
Barforth Hall Bridge | 1950s | private road bridge | 54°32′43″N 1°44′42″W / 54.54528°N 1.74500°W |
Piercebridge to Yarm edit
Yarm to the river mouth edit
See also edit
- Tees Railway Viaduct (1860-1971).
References edit
Notes edit
Citations edit
- ^ "Bridges over the Tees" (PDF). myice.ice.org.uk. Institute of Civil Engineers. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ a b Fitzpatrick, A. P.; Scott, Peter R. (1999). "The Roman Bridge at Piercebridge, North Yorkshire-County Durham". Britannia. 30: 111–132. doi:10.2307/526675. JSTOR 526675. S2CID 162361828.
- ^ "Bridge over troubled water: Roman finds from the Tees at Piercebridge and beyond | The Past". The Past. Current Archarology. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
- ^ a b Harrison, David (7 October 2004). The Bridges of Medieval England: Transport and Society 400-1800. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-155679-1.
- ^ a b c Warwick, Tosh. "The Politics of Bridge Building: The Long Wait for the Tees (Newport) Bridge". Cleveland & Teesside Local History Society. 1 January 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
- ^ Rennison, Robert William (2019). "The Great Inundation of 1771 and the Rebuilding of the North-East's Bridges" (PDF). Archaeologia Aeliana. 29: 269291. doi:10.5284/1061067. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ a b c Betteney, Alan (2019). "Crossing the Tees: Fords, Ferries and Bridges" (PDF). River Tees Rediscovered. Tees Archaeology: 31–32. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
- ^ "Bridges on the Tees". Bridges on the Tyne. 2001. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
- ^ "OpenData support | OS Tools & Support".
- ^ "Birkdale Footbridge". Bridges on the Tyne. 2001. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ "Winch Bridge". Bridges on the Tyne. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ White, Andrew (13 February 2022). "What's the story behind County Durham's wobbly bridge - and its tragic history?". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- ^ "WYNCH BRIDGE, Holwick - 1121562". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "MIDDLETON BRIDGE, Holwick - 1160160". Historic England.
- ^ "MIDDLETON BRIDGE, Holwick - 1203554". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "EGGLESTON BRIDGE, Eggleston - 1121638". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "Deepdale Footbridge". Bridges on the Tyne. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "DEEPDALE AQUEDUCT (THAT PART IN BARNARD CASTLE CIVIL PARISH), Barnard Castle - 1291706". Historic England.
- ^ "DEEPDALE AQUEDUCT, Barnard Castle - 1310593". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "BARNARD CASTLE BRIDGE, OVER THE RIVER TEES, Startforth - 1121647". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "BARNARD CASTLE BRIDGE (THAT PART IN BARNARD CASTLE CIVIL PARISH) AND ATTACHED WALL TO SOUTH EAST, Barnard Castle - 1201056". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "Barnard Castle Bridge, Barnard Castle - 1002353". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "FOOTBRIDGE OVER RIVER TEES (THAT PART IN BARNARD CASTLE CIVIL PARISH), Barnard Castle - 1291732". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "ABBEY BRIDGE, Egglestone Abbey - 1310824". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d Rennison, R. W. (1981). "3. County Durham and Cleveland". Civil Engineering Heritage Northern England. the Institution of Civil Engineers. pp. 70–101 – via ICE Virtual Library.
- ^ "WHORLTON BRIDGE, Whorlton - 1160013". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "WHORLTON SUSPENSION BRIDGE, OVER THE RIVER TEES, Wycliffe with Thorpe - 1322762". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "Whorlton suspension bridge, Whorlton - 1002299". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ a b Lloyd, Chris (1 August 2018). "Flying back to day Ray Hanna piloted Spitfire under Winston Bridge". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
- ^ "WINSTON BRIDGE, OVER THE RIVER TEES, Barforth - 1121747". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "WINSTON BRIDGE, Barforth - 1323060". Historic England. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "West Tees Railway Bridge". Bridges on the Tyne. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ a b "PIERCE BRIDGE, Piercebridge - 1131363". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ a b "PIERCEBRIDGE BRIDGE, Piercebridge - 1145843". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Piercebridge Bridge, Piercebridge - 1002344". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "BLACKWELL BRIDGE, Non Civil Parish - 1121318". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "CROFT BRIDGE, Croft-on-Tees - 1116440". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "CROFT BRIDGE, Croft-on-Tees - 1131364". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "TEES BRIDGE, Hurworth - 1131366". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "TEES RAILWAY BRIDGE, Croft-on-Tees - 1299454". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "NEASHAM HALL BRIDGE, Neasham - 1299423". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "YARM VIADUCT, Yarm - 1139259". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "Yarm Bridge". Stockton Heritage. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "YARM BRIDGE OVER RIVER TEES, Yarm - 1105658". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "Yarm Bridge, Egglescliffe - 1006763". Historic England. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
External links edit
- "The Bridges of the Tees". BBC Plades. 16 January 2009.