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Craigellachie Bridge
Craigellachie Bridge crosses the River Spey in north-east Scotland. It was designed by Thomas Telford (so is shown on some maps as "Telford Bridge") and built in 1812-14. Taking local advice, the bridge was built several feet higher than originally planned, and probably as a result of this was the only bridge over the Spey to remain standing after the Muckle Spate (the Great Flood) in August 1829.
It was built of cast iron, with two medieval-looking masonry towers at each end. The span is 46 metres. The design was almost forced by the fact that it would have been exceedingly difficult to build a masonry pillar in the middle of the deep and fast-flowing River Spey (which in any case would have been very vulnerable to flood damage).
The bridge was in full use until 1972, though the very sharp right-angle turn at the north end of the bridge (and the single-track road carved into the cliff which followed) made it unsuitable for anything other than the lightest traffic. When a new reinforced concrete bridge was opened on 13 October 1972 (so now over 50 years old) about 100 metres down stream, to carry the A941, Telford’s bridge was restricted to cyclists and pedestrians only.
by David Purchase
It was built of cast iron, with two medieval-looking masonry towers at each end. The span is 46 metres. The design was almost forced by the fact that it would have been exceedingly difficult to build a masonry pillar in the middle of the deep and fast-flowing River Spey (which in any case would have been very vulnerable to flood damage).
The bridge was in full use until 1972, though the very sharp right-angle turn at the north end of the bridge (and the single-track road carved into the cliff which followed) made it unsuitable for anything other than the lightest traffic. When a new reinforced concrete bridge was opened on 13 October 1972 (so now over 50 years old) about 100 metres down stream, to carry the A941, Telford’s bridge was restricted to cyclists and pedestrians only.
by David Purchase
Created: Wed, 9 Aug 2023, Updated: Wed, 9 Aug 2023
6 images use this description: (all images taken in 2023)
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