Building record 9401/1/1 - Dow Bridge (C18th?), Watling Street

1838 rebuild of possible C18th bridge.

{1} Road bridge (now disused) carrying Watling Street over the River Avon. An 1838 partial rebuild of an earlier bridge (probably C18). Tooled coursed ashlar. Chamfered coping. 6 elliptically headed arches; the arch to the NW has a keystone carrying the date 'W.P. 1838'. The 2 NW arches almost completely rebuilt in 1938 (perhaps retaining the earlier cutwater), but considerable sections of an earlier bridge survive (built of rougher coursed masonry), especially at the SE end. The road level has been built up to the level of the parapet coping. A 1722 engraving of an earlier bridge is to be found in the Warwickshire Record Office; it is possible that the present structure incorporates sections of the bridge illustrated.

{3} C17th/C18th bridge over the Avon was bypassed by brick single span bridge which was built in 1937.

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 8/59 (checked) (Digital archive). SNN102353.

<2> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ("Greenback"), G03 (unchecked) (Catalogue). SNN44900.

<3> Goodfellow P., 1998, Northamptonshire Bridges, (checked) (Gazetteer). SNN42745.

Record last edited

Apr 22 2013 9:59AM