2013

NZ2565 : Lambert's Leap, Sandyford Road

taken 12 years ago, near to Byker, Newcastle Upon Tyne, England

Lambert's Leap, Sandyford Road
Lambert's Leap, Sandyford Road
The carved stone lettering set into the modern brick wall located behind a bus shelter on Sandyford Road, at its junction with Grantham Road, is the only visible memory of the once famous site of the local legend known as Lambert's Leap NZ2565 : Sandyford Road near Lambert's Leap

At the time of the famous leap, 20th September 1759, there was a narrow bridge here which crossed the deep wooded Sandyford Dene, a tributary of the Ouse Burn further east. Cuthbert Lambert, a young customs officer, and son of a famous Newcastle Physician, was riding his horse when it suddenly went out of control and jumped the parapet of the bridge, thinking it was merely a boundary. The horse fell 37 feet to its death, breaking every bone in its back. Although some accounts suggest Lambert remained in the saddle until the bottom, others describe how he was saved by grasping hold of the projecting branches of an old ash tree. His miraculous survival became an instant sensation, retold in news-sheets across the country. The lettering was carved in the coping stones of the bridge parapet.

An aquatint depicting the incident by P Dawne dated 1786 is in the British Library collection LinkExternal link (Archive LinkExternal link )

Twelve years later another rider suffered the same ordeal and also survived, but a Newcastle surgeon, Nicholson, was killed in a similar accident in 1827. The dene was filled in not long after and Sandyford Burn now flows in a culvert below Grantham Road.

There was once a nearby public house named Lambert's Leap with a suitable sign depicting the dramatic scene. It closed in 1971 and was demolished and little remains to keep the place name in use.

Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Andrew Curtis and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
This photo is linked from: Automatic Clusters: · Sandyford Road [40] · Junction [16] · Lambert's Leap [3] Other Photos: · Sandyford Road near Lambert's Leap ·
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NZ2565, 270 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Andrew Curtis   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Friday, 9 August, 2013   (more nearby)
Submitted
Monday, 26 August, 2013
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! NZ 2561 6527 [10m precision]
WGS84: 54:58.8828N 1:36.0825W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! NZ 25613 65276
View Direction
East-southeast (about 112 degrees)
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Image classification(about): Supplemental image
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