Summary
Road bridge, of medieval origins with late-C18, mid-C19, late-C19 and late-C20 alterations and additions.
Reasons for Designation
Bury Bridge, a medieval bridge with a sequence of widening up to the late C20, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Architectural interest:
* as a multi-phased bridge originating in medieval times with a later sequence of widening that encapsulates the evolving construction and design of bridges over a period of some 600 years;
* it provides a material record of the increasing volume and size of vehicles using the route, from pack-horses to heavy goods vehicles;
* the construction of the bridge is well-executed employing good quality materials and craftsmanship, which delineates its successive phases;
* the quality of decoration of the 1883 phase and the inclusion of a cartouche displaying an inscription and the arms of the County Borough of Bury, demonstrates that considerable civic pride was invested in the design.
Historic interest:
* the building of the original bridge shows a considerable investment in the medieval infrastructure of Bury, suggesting the growth of the settlement and the growing importance of this trans-Pennine route and its role in the woollen trade (which experienced rapid expansion during the medieval period).
History
The settlement of Bury grew up following the granting of a Market Charter in 1251 and the reconstruction of the parish church. It was situated at a crossing point of the River Irwell, on a significant east-west trans-Pennine route from Halifax. The bridge is first mentioned in 1313 to 1314 in a record of a dispute between one Geoffrey del Bridge and the Lord of the Manor of Bury. Throughout the medieval period, the town continued to grow due to the development and growth of the woollen trade, which probably led to an improvement of regional routes and the re-building of the bridge; stylistically, the earliest phase of the present Bury Bridge dates to this period. It originally comprised a narrow three-span masonry structure with pointed arches, flanked by angular cutwaters that also functioned as pedestrian refuges.
During the post-medieval period a ‘Survey of the Manor’ (1626) noted that the bridge to the west of the ford was ‘in decay’, which would suggest that the bridge had been standing for some considerable time. It was considered to be a 'Hundred Bridge' with repair costs being levied on the whole of the Salford Hundred, as demonstrated in 1648, when the township book of Haliwell (near Bolton) records an unspecified amount contributed towards the repair of Bury Bridge. At Michaelmas 1660, Thomas Whitehead and Joseph Allen reported that Bury Bridge was in such a ruinous state that it could not be repaired for less than £25 0s 0d and three years later, a further plea was made to one of the magistrates for repairs ‘as the last floods have made wider the breach’. In 1782, the bridge master of Salford Hundred stated that the bridge was very narrow and that it comprised three Gothic arches. Two years later in 1784, the diarist Captain Roger Dewhurst, in his capacity as a surveyor visited Bury Bridge, found that the west arch had been hollowed and worn away, and was in a ruinous state; it was decided to remove the arch and widen the replacement by four feet to allow a greater flow of traffic. The work was undertaken by the contractors John Hague and John Armitage, with the building of a replacement segmental west arch and more than doubling the width of the bridge on the northern side, to allow the safe passage of carriages.
The bridge was widened again after 1854 and then again in 1883, when major works were undertaken by the Elton based builders Newhouse and Wrigley who widened it by 8m. During this work, matching decorative gritstone parapets, with raised central cartouches were built on both sides of the bridge and its southern elevation was rendered and scored to represent large ashlar blocks, to match the appearance of the new parapet wall above. The bridge remained in this state for almost 70 years, but the marked increase in motor traffic during the late 1960s, led to a decision to build the northern Bury Bypass (Peel Way). This entailed the partial dismantling and re-building of the southern parapet and the demolition of the north parapet to make way for the new bridge extension on the northern side. In addition, the soffits of the C18 and C19 arches had an incised grid pattern cut into their surfaces to receive a mesh of steel strengthening rods, and the medieval phase was sprayed with a thin layer of Spraycrete. The work was completed in 1970, creating a modern seven-lane bridge-crossing.
Details
Road bridge, medieval with late-C18, mid-C19, late-C19 and late-C20 alterations and additions.
MATERIALS: Trencherbone sandstone, gritstone and reinforced concrete.
PLAN: a triple-span rectangular-plan, aligned roughly east-west, with a splayed western end.
DESCRIPTION: MEDIEVAL BRIDGE: this comprises the east and central pointed arches of the south (down-stream) elevation and the fragmentary east springing of the later segmental west arch. The original arches are approximately 2m wide and have a span of 8.30m; they have recessed voussoirs and have been rendered and scored to give the appearance of ashlar blocks, to match the gritstone parapet installed in 1883. The piers have triangular cutwaters that have been reduced in height, capped and rendered. The soffits of the arches have been sprayed in a coat of Spraycrete, which is thin enough to show thin stone slab voussoirs, and where the coating has spalled, blocks of ashlar can be seen. A straight join exists in the soffit of the fragmentary section within the west arch.
PHASE 2: POST 1784 RECONSTRUCTION AND EXTENSION: this comprises three segmental Trencherbone sandstone arches, the apex of which match that of those of the original bridge. A slightly angled abutment with a projecting pier, extends from the west bank, and rises to a canted concrete beam that extends to the west cutwater. The west arch has a span of 9.64m, and a width of approximately 4m, with a fragmentary section of the original medieval springing retained within the arch. The centre and east arch are approximately 2m wide, and are built against, and obscure, the north elevation of the medieval bridge. Four pairs of timber centring corbels are situated just below the springing of the arches.
PHASE 3: POST 1843 EXTENSION: this comprises three segmental gritstone arches that abut and obscure the north elevation of the second phase. The arches are 4.05m wide and the profiles match those of the second phase, although the eastern end of the east arch is skewed and widens to the north. Two pairs of timber centring corbels project from just below the springing line of the centre and east arches.
PHASE 4: 1883 EXTENSION: this was built against and obscures the north elevation of the proceeding phase. The north elevation comprises three segmental gritstone arches with stepped ashlar voussoirs. The spandrels are faced by coursed tooled blocks and slightly projecting piers rise up off the lobe-like cutwaters, skewed to match the direction of the flow of the river. The central arch and the east arch have centring corbels projecting from the springing line to each side. The ashlar gritstone south parapet wall has a smooth inner elevation, while the outer elevation has recessed panels with the spaces between forming two rectangular posts with plain copings over the bridge piers. A projecting post is also formed over the central arch that supports a cartouche with an inverted and rebated shield frame, displaying the arms of the County Borough of Bury; the motto reads: VINCIT OMNIA INDUSTRIA (all industry wins), and the words: BOROUGH OF BURY - DUCKWORTH 1883 MAYOR are inscribed into a raised circular strap belt. The terminal posts of the parapet wall rise off plinths with bullnose mouldings and moulded cornices supporting rectangular capstones.
PHASE 5: LATE 1960s to 1970: this is a three-lane bridge deck approximately 76m long and 14.5m wide formed of flat reinforced concrete beams that splay slightly to the north-west. The beams spring from slab-sided reinforced concrete abutments and are carried on a central transverse skewed concrete beam supported by pillars that rise from the river floor. The pavement on the northern side of the bridge is protected by plain steel balustrade fences. This phase is of lesser interest than the earlier phases; however, it demonstrates the on-going continuity of the development of the structure.
