This is Wylam Railway Bridge, about two miles downriver
from where we live now.
It was constructed in the mid-nineteenth century by the
Scotswood, Newburn and Wylam Railway in an attractive location at a bend on the
River Tyne and opened to traffic on 6 October 1876. The ironwork is by the firm
of Hawks, Crayshay & Co. of Gateshead with masonry and foundations by W E
Jackson & Co. of Newcastle and the engineer was W G Laws. It was designed
with a single span to avoid building piers in the river bed under which were
shallow mine workings. Just beyond the bridge the railway made a connection
with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway at West Wylam Junction, controlled by a
tall signal box, which no longer exists and nearby was the junction giving
access to West Wylam colliery. Freight trains were the main users of the bridge
although some passenger trains on the branch were extended to Hexham and it was
used by excursion trains.
The railway closed on 11 March 1968 and the rails lifted in
1972. It is now used by pedestrians and cyclists as part of a route between
Newburn and Ovingham.
We walked across it yesterday.
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