Wallingford Bridge

Wallingford Bridge
Wallingford Bridge from downstream
Coordinates	51°36′02.5″N 1°07′13.5″W / 51.600694°N 1.120417°WCoordinates: 51°36′02.5″N 1°07′13.5″W / 51.600694°N 1.120417°W
Carries	Road
Crosses	River Thames
Locale	Wallingford
Maintained by	Oxfordshire County Council
Characteristics
Design	arch
Material	stone
Total length	900 feet (270 m)
Height	16 feet 5 inches (5.00 m)[1]
Number of spans	22

Wallingford Bridge is a medieval road bridge over the River Thames in England which connects Wallingford and Crowmarsh Gifford, Oxfordshire (Wallingford was historically in Berkshire until 1974 reorganization). It crosses the Thames on the reach between Cleeve Lock and Benson Lock. The bridge is 900 feet long and has 22 arches but most traffic now crosses Winterbrook Bridge, built as part of the by-pass to the south of the town in 1993.

History

The first reference to a bridge across the Thames between Wallingford and Crowmarsh Gifford is from 1141, when King Stephen besieged Wallingford Castle. The first stone bridge is credited to Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, and four remaining arches are believed to contain 13th century elements. Major repairs used stone from the dissolved Holy Trinity Priory in 1530. Four arches were removed so a drawbridge could be inserted during the siege of the castle in the Civil War of 1646, and these were replaced with timber structures until repair in 1751. Following a flood, three arches were rebuilt by Richard Clarke from 1810-1812 to a design by John Treacher (1760-1836) developed in 1809, and a parapet and balustrade added.^[2]

See also

• Crossings of the River Thames

References

1. River Thames Alliance. Bridge heights on the River Thames
2. Thacker, Fred. S. (1968) [1920]. The Thames Highway: Volume II Locks and Weirs. Newton Abbot: David and Charles. p. not cited.

External links

• Wallingford History Gateway
• Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide: Images of Wallingford Bridge