Harrington Bridge crosses 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 ...

near Sawley in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

carrying the ''Tamworth Road'' ( B6540) into

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

. The stonework of the bridge dates from 1790, but the central section was replaced in 1905 after it was damaged by flood water. The central section is the only part of the bridge that is not a

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 ...

History

Crossings at this point date at least from the 14th century when several timber bridges were built. Although one lasted 80 years, they were all washed away and in 1321 a ferry at Sawley was initiated. The existing bridge dates from 1789 to 1790 and was designed by the bridge engineer and architect, Thomas Harrison of

Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...

. The new bridge was a toll bridge and everyone except locals living in Sawley or Hemington (in Leicestershire) were required to pay the toll. The

lord of the manor Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a historical rural estate. The titles date to the English Feudalism, feudal (specifically English feudal barony, baronial) system. The ...

and his servants were also specifically excluded from toll charges. In 1792, a ford to the west of the bridge became impassable as a result of a weir built at Redhill in Nottinghamshire which must have increased the income from tolls. The lord of the manor from 1779 was

Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington General Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington (17 March 17535 September 1829), styled Viscount Petersham until 1779, was a British Army officer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1779 when he succeeded to the pe ...

The ( 28 Geo. 3. c. 80) authorised the construction of the bridge. Harrington Bridge consisted of six arches of stone, which, with the approaches, were about yards long, and wide, with a

toll house A tollhouse or toll house is a building with accommodation for a toll collector, beside a tollgate on a toll road, canal, or toll bridge. History Many tollhouses were built by turnpike trusts in England, Wales and Scotland during the 18th and ...

. The first bridge was washed down by the great flood before it was completed, previous to which here was a ford. The bridge was erected by shareholders, at a cost of around £4,000 (), and tolls were levied to those crossing the bridge until 1882. The bridge was damaged in floods during 1904. In 1906 a two-span riveted steel

girder bridge A girder bridge is a bridge that uses girders as the means of supporting its deck. The two most common types of modern steel girder bridges are plate and box. The term "girder" is often used interchangeably with "beam" in reference to bridge d ...

was erected replacing the central section, retaining the original stone approach arches. The remaining parts of the original bridge are recorded in the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, ...

as designated Grade II

listed buildings 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, H ...

. It now carries ''Tamworth Road'', the B6540, (formerly the A453) over the river providing a link between Leicestershire and Derbyshire.

References

Sources

*Inland Waterways Association, Aegre Region Newsletter 114
page 26
July 2006 *Inland Waterways Association, Aegre Region Newsletter 115
page 25
November 2006

External links

{{commons category inline, Harrington Bridge Bridges in Leicestershire Bridges in Derbyshire Bridges across the River Trent Grade II listed buildings in Leicestershire Grade II listed buildings in Derbyshire Bridges completed in 1790 Thomas Harrison buildings Former toll bridges in England Grade II listed bridges 1790 establishments in England

History

See also

References

Sources

External links