Tweed Bridge, Peebles
| Tweed Bridge | |
| Peeblesshire | |
|---|---|
 The Tweed Bridge, Peebles | |
| Location | |
| Carrying: | B7062 road |
| Crossing: | River Tweed |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NT25044029 |
| Location: | 55°39’1"N, 3°11’34"W |
| Structure | |
| Material: | Stone |
| History | |
| Built 1663 | |
| Information | |
The Tweed Bridge is a stone-built road bridge of five spans over the River Tweed in Peebles, the county town of Peeblesshire. This is the town's only road bridge over the river: there is a footbridge a little downstream.
History
The Tweed Bridge is mediæval in origin, although the exact date of its construction is unknown.[1] Records show that a stone bridge has been maintained at the site since the middle of the 15th century, and work done in 1465 may have been the construction of a new bridge or substantial rebuilding or maintenance of an existing one.[2][1][3] A mason known as John of Peebles may have worked on the bridge at that time.[1] A plaque on the bridge states that it was originally a wooden bridge clad in stone.[4]
The bridge was reconstructed in 1663 using stone from St Andrew's Church which had been destroyed in 1548 by an English army as part of the Rough Wooing.[2] John Hisplop added three additional arches to the south end of the bridge in 1799, but these were removed when the Peebles Railway was built.[1]
In 1834 the bridge was widened from 8 feet to 21 feet by adding stonework to both sides.[5][6] This work was done by John and Thomas Smith of Darnick, and the cost of around £1,000 was funded by public subscription.[5] Between 1897 and 1900, it was widened again to 40 feet by adding to the downstream side.[5] This work, which cost about £8,000, was done by McTaggart, Cowan and Barker, and funded by the Town Council.[5]
On the south side of the bridge the remains of Second World War defences were evident until the road was resurfaced.[7]
The bridge was listed as a category A listed building in 1971.[5] Plans are being considered for an additional bridge over the Tweed in the town.[8][9]
Design
The five spans vary in length from 38 feet to 42 feet.[1] The oldest part of the bridge uses arches which are almost circular, but the more modern parts use flatter segmental arches.[1] On the upstream side the piers have triangular ashlar cutwaters, and rounded profiles on the downstream side.[2][5] At the north end of the bridge is an arched ramp to the east that leads to Tweed Green.[5]
The Tweed Bridge is the only road crossing of the Tweed within Peebles.[2] It carries the B7062 public road, which is two lanes wide at this point.
Near to the Tweed Bridge is the Cuddy Bridge, a single arch bridge over the Eddleston Water, a tributary of the Tweed.[10]
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References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Peebles, Tweed Bridge". rcahms.gov.uk. http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/51465/details/peebles+tweed+bridge/. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Tweed Bridge, Peebles". engineering-timelines.com. http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=1207. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ↑ Renwick, Robert (1903). Peebles: Burgh and Parish in Early History. A. Redpath. p. 61. https://archive.org/details/peeblesburghand00renwgoog.
- ↑ Tweed Bridge (15th century): Plaque on bridge: Geograph.org.uk
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Tweed Bridge (Category A) - Listing detail (Historic Environment Scotland)
- ↑ Peebles and its Neighbourhood, with a Run on Peebles Railway. 1856. p. 44. https://books.google.com/books?id=Y1xZAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA44.
- ↑ "Peebles, Tweed Bridge (Peebles Defences)". rcahms.gov.uk. http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/158551/details/peebles+tweed+bridge/. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ↑ "Peebles new River Tweed road bridge options examined". BBC News. 9 November 2012. http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-20266037. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ↑ "Progress made on new Tweed Bridge". Peeblesshire News. 5 May 2013. http://www.peeblesshirenews.com/news/roundup/articles/2013/05/05/456067-progress-made-on-new-tweed-bridge/. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ↑ CANMORE (RCAHMS) record of Peebles, Cuddy Bridge
- Tweed Bridge, Peebles: Bridges on the Tyne
| Bridges and crossings on the River Tweed | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manor Bridge | Neidpath Viaduct | Fotheringham Footbridge | Tweed Bridge | Priorsford Footbridge | Kailzie Bridge | Cardrona Railway Bridge |
