Prebends Bridge, along with Framwellgate and

Elvet Elvet is an area of the city of Durham, England, Durham, in County Durham, England. It is situated on the opposite side of the River Wear from Durham Cathedral and forms the south-eastern part of central Durham. Name The name ''Elvet'' is re ...

bridges, is one of three stone-

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its structural load, loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either si ...

s in the centre of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, that cross the

River Wear The River Wear (, ) in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley t ...

History

Prebends Bridge was designed by George Nicholson and built from 1772 to 1778. The bridge was built on the instructions of the Dean of Durham and served as a private road for the Dean and Chapter of Durham, giving access from the south through the Watergate. It replaced a temporary bridge built after the footbridge, built in 1574, was swept away during a flood in 1771. The current bridge affords an excellent view of the cathedral and was built specifically with aesthetic considerations in mind - it was built slightly north of the prior bridge, at a wider part of the river, to improve the views available. Trees were planted along the riverbank to complete the Romantic picture. Forming part of the estate of

Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the Mother Church#Cathedral, mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the ...

, the bridge is a Grade I

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 ...

and is situated below the Watergate at the end of South Bailey (with which it is in concurrence), just after

St Cuthbert's Society St Cuthbert's Society, colloquially known as Cuth's, is a colleges of Durham University, college of Durham University. It was founded in 1888 for students who were not attached to the existing colleges. St Cuthbert's Society is a Bailey college, ...

. Although the bridge is wide enough for vehicles, it is mainly used as a footbridge as it only leads to the Riverside paths and up to a closed road barrier to South Bailey. The bridge was restored from 1955 to 1956. In autumn 2010 the bridge was temporarily reopened to road traffic under 3 tonnes while Saddler Street was closed because of extensive repaving works as part of the Heart of the City project, sponsored by Durham City Vision.

Plaque

Prebends Bridge has a plaque to display Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

's words about Durham: Grey towers of Durham Yet well I love thy mixed and massive piles Half church of God, half castle ‘gainst the Scot And long to roam these venerable aisles With records stored of deeds long since forgot File:Scott inscription (Prebends Bridge).jpg, Inscription of Scott's words File:Durham School Boat Club - boat house summer.jpg, alt=A picture of Durham School Boat Club's boat house in summer, taken from Prebends Bridge,

Durham School Boat Club Durham School Boat Club (DSBC) is a school club offering rowing to students, parents, friends and other local schools. Based at Durham School in the city of Durham, England. History Durham School Boat Club was founded in 1847. However, there wa ...

's boat house as seen from the bridge File:Prebends and weir.JPG, From downstream File:Prebends bridge layby 2013 January.jpg, View from the north, note the

lay-by A rest area is a public facility located next to a large thoroughfare such as a motorway, expressway, or highway, at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting onto secondary roads. Other names include motorway ser ...

(originally used as a meeting place for wide vehicular traffic) on the left. File:Prebends Bridge crossing 2013 January.jpg, A pedestrian crosses Prebends Bridge in winter File:Prebends Cathedral View.jpg, View of the Cathedral Towers from the western side of the bridge File:Prebends south view.jpg, View from the bridge facing during summertime

References

{{reflist

External links

Durham City Tourism
54.771, -1.5793 Bridges across the River Wear Bridges completed in 1778 Bridges in County Durham Buildings and structures in Durham, England Grade I listed bridges Durham, Prebends