Forth Bridge (railway)
Posted by: 
walkerm
N 56° 00.025 W 003° 23.324
30V E 475756 N 6206194
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever, railway bridge over the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, to the east of the Forth Road Bridge, and 14 km (9 miles) west of central Edinburgh.
Waymark Code: WM2238
Location: United Kingdom
Date Posted: 08/22/2007
Views: 85
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever, railway bridge over the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, to the east of the Forth Road Bridge, and 14 km (9 miles) west of central Edinburgh. It is often called the "Forth Rail Bridge" to distinguish it from the Forth Road Bridge. The bridge connects Scotland's capital Edinburgh with Kingdom of Fife, and acts as a major artery connecting the north-east and south-east of the country. Described as "the one internationally recognised Scottish landmark",[1] it may be nominated by the British government as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[2] The bridge and its associated railway infrastructure is owned by Network Rail Infrastructure Limited.
Construction of an earlier bridge, designed by Sir Thomas Bouch, got as far as the laying of the foundation stone, but was stopped after the failure of another of his works, the Tay Bridge. On Bouch's death the project was handed over to Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker, who designed a structure that was built by Sir William Arrol's company between 1883 and 1890. Baker - "one of the most remarkable civil engineers Britain ever produced" - and his colleague Allan Stewart received the major credit for design and overseeing construction work.
The bridge is, even today, regarded as an engineering marvel. It is 2.5 km (1.5 miles) in length, and the double track is elevated 46 m (approx. 150 ft) above high tide. It consists of two main spans of 1,710 ft, two side spans of 675 ft, 15 approach spans of 168 ft, and five of 25 ft.[3] Each main span comprises two 680 ft cantilever arms supporting a central 350 ft span girder bridge). The three great four-tower cantilever structures are 340 ft (104 m) tall, each 70 ft diameter foot resting on a separate foundation. The southern group of foundations had to be constructed as caissons under compressed air, to a depth of 90 ft. At its peak, approximately 4,600 workers were employed in its construction. Initially, it was recorded that 57 lives were lost; however, after extensive research by local historians, the figure has been revised upwards to 98.[4] Eight men were saved by boats positioned in the river under the working areas.
Hundreds more were left crippled by serious accidents, and one log book of accidents and sickness had 26,000 entries. In 2005, a project was set up by the Queensferry History Group to establish a memorial to those workers who died during the bridge's construction. In North Queensferry, a decision was also made to set up memorial benches to commemorate those who died during the construction of both the rail and the road bridges, and to seek support for this project from Fife Council.
More than 55,000 tons of steel were used, as well as 18,122 m³ of granite and over eight million rivets. The bridge was opened on March 4, 1890 by the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, who drove home the last rivet, which was gold plated and suitably inscribed.
Parking Coordinates:: N 55° 59.504 W 003° 24.236
Date Built: 01/01/1890
Length of Span:
Overall length is 8296 ft - 2528.7 m.
For further facts and figures see http://www.forthbridges.org.uk/railbridgefacts.htm
www: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Log your find with a picture of the bridge with yourself or your GPS in the foreground. This shot does not have to be taken "on" the bridge. The shot should show the "truss" structure of the bridge as well.