Survey Data
Reg No
40906238
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Technical
Original Use
Bridge
In Use As
Bridge
Date
1810 - 1830
Coordinates
227342, 405924
Date Recorded
04/10/2010
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Single-arched bridge carrying road over small unnamed stream, built c. 1820. Segmental-headed arch with roughly dressed stone voussoirs; squared rubble stone construction to arch barrel. Squared and rubble stone construction to spandrels and abutments. Rubble stone construction to parapets with roughly squared field stone boulders over. Arch barrel crosses road at an angle. Tarmacadam deck with grass verges. Located in the rural countryside to the north-east of Raphoe.
Appraisal
This modest single-arch bridge retains its early form and character, and is a feature of some rustic appeal in the rural landscape to the north-east of Raphoe. It is robustly-constructed in local rubble stone masonry, and its continued survival and use stands as testament to the quality of its original construction, and of the skill of the masons involved. The arch barrel runs under the road at an angle, which is of technical engineering merit. The coursed rubble construction, fieldstone voussoirs and roughly squared fieldstone boulder coping add rustic charm that helps to elevate this bridge above many of its local contemporaries. It was probably originally constructed during the late-eighteenth century or the first decades of the nineteenth century, a period that saw a great deal of road and bridge-building in Ireland, particularly by the Grand Juries (the forerunners of the County Councils). This unassuming rustic bridge is an addition to both the built heritage of the local area and to the extensive transport heritage of County Donegal.