Chetwynd Bridge (also known as Salter's Bridge) is a three-arch

cast-iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content of more than 2% and silicon content around 1–3%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloying elements determine the form in which its car ...

bridge in

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, England. It carries the A513 road over the River Tame between

Edingale Edingale is a village and civil parish in Lichfield District, Staffordshire, England.OS Explorer Map 245: The National Forest :(1:25 000) :

and

Alrewas Alrewas ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Lichfield District of Staffordshire, England. Geography The village is beside the River Trent and about northeast of Lichfield. It is located southwest of Burton-on-Trent. The parish is b ...

in Staffordshire, England. It was completed in 1824 and is a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

Design

The bridge was built in 1824. It has three segmental arches spanning the river, supported by rusticated

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

pillars. The

spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...

s (the space between the arch and the bridge deck) have decorative X-shaped

latticework __NOTOC__ Latticework is an openwork framework consisting of a criss-crossed pattern of strips of building material, typically wood or metal. The design is created by crossing the strips to form a grid or weave. Latticework may be functional &nd ...

. The

abutment An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end that provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

s sweep round to form

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...

es; the intermediate piers are in a similar style. The two outside spans are wide and the central span is . The bridge is oriented roughly north–south and the northernmost span is over dry land.Cragg, p. 86. The bridge was designed by Joseph Potter, a local architect and builder and the county surveyor for

. Potter likely learnt to build with cast iron while working under

Thomas Telford Thomas Telford (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotland, as well ...

, including on the

Harecastle Tunnel Harecastle Tunnel is a canal tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal in Staffordshire between Kidsgrove and Tunstall. The tunnel, which is long, was once one of the longest in the country. Its industrial purpose was for the transport of coal to ...

. The bridge was cast by the

Coalbrookdale Company Coalbrookdale is a town in the Ironbridge Gorge and the Telford and Wrekin borough of Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge. Th ...

in Shropshire, famous for

The Iron Bridge The Iron Bridge is a cast iron arch bridge that crosses the River Severn in Shropshire, England. Opened in 1781, it was the first major bridge in the world to be made of cast iron. Its success inspired the widespread use of cast iron as a str ...

(the first substantial cast-iron bridge in the world). The same company cast High Bridge over the

River Trent The Trent is the third Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, longest river in the United Kingdom. Its Source (river or stream), source is in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through and drains the North Midlands ...

in nearby

Mavesyn Ridware Mavesyn Ridware is a village and civil parish in Lichfield District, Staffordshire, England. The parish had a population of 1,048 in 2001, increasing to 1,128 at the 2011 Census. It includes the villages of Hill Ridware, Rake End, Pipe Ridware ...

, also to Potter's design.

History

The bridge is believed to be the largest surviving pre-1830 cast-iron bridge in England and the second-largest in the world. The bridge is a Grade II*

, first listed in 1953, a status which provides legal protection from demolition or unauthorised modification. A condition survey in 1979 revealed significant corrosion and fracturing of the metalwork; repairs were completed in 1983. After a deterioration in the condition of the ironwork was noticed, the bridge was added to the

Heritage at Risk Register An annual ''Heritage at Risk Register'' is published by Historic England. The survey is used by national and local government, a wide range of individuals and heritage groups to establish the extent of risk and to help assess priorities for acti ...

in 2022. Amey and

Staffordshire County Council Staffordshire County Council is the upper-tier Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includ ...

(the owner of the bridge) carried out restoration work over a period of eight months, beginning in June 2022, which won several awards from the

Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT, formerly the Institution of Highways and Transportation) is a British learned society for the planning, design, construction, maintenance and operation of land-based transport system ...

. As a result, the bridge was removed from the at-risk register. A weight limit of was imposed to prevent further deterioration, which was later reduced to . In 2023, barriers were installed to prevent large vehicles from using the bridge after concerns that many heavy vehicles were ignoring signs warning of the restriction. As of 2023, the council planned to build a new bridge and bypass road to divert vehicle traffic and reserve Chetwynd Bridge for pedestrians and cyclists.

References

Bibliography

* * *

Citations

{{Reflist Cast-iron arch bridges in England Grade II* listed bridges in England Grade II* listed buildings in Staffordshire Bridges in Staffordshire 1824 establishments in England Bridges completed in 1824 Lichfield District

Design

History

See also

References

Bibliography

Citations