Stone Bridge 143 On The Leeds Liverpool Canal – Colne, UK
Posted by: dtrebilc
N 53° 51.236 W 002° 12.029
30U E 552590 N 5967567
The Leeds Liverpool canal is the longest canal in Northern England.
Waymark Code: WMQ09K
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 11/21/2015
Views: 1
The canal is 127.25 miles long and flows from the inland woollen town of Leeds to the coastal sea port of Liverpool, crossing the Pennines along the way. Work on the canal started in 1770 and built in a number of sections and was finally completed in 1816.
The stone bridge is a Historic England Grade II
listed building
with the following description. "SD 83 NE BARROWFORD LEEDS AND LIVERPOOL CANAL Barrowford Locks 11/274 Barrowford Road Bridge - No 143 GV II Public road bridge, 1794. Robert Whitworth, engineer. Dressed stone. Single elliptical arch with rusticated voussoirs, splayed slightly to accommodate towpath on eastern sides. Band and plain coped parapet. Curved abutments end in piers."
Like many of the bridges on this canal the arch stones are painted white to help boat owners judge their approach through the bridge. In addition because the bridge straddles the tow path on one side of the canal the bridge keystone is not in the middle of the canal. A vertical white line painted on the bridge parapet indicates the middle of the canal itself to further aid navigation.
The bridge used to carry motor vehicles, but was superseded by a much larger modern concrete bridge carrying Colne Road (B6247) and this bridge is now restricted to pedestrians and cyclists.
This original bridge stands just before the entrance to lock 49 on the canal. The replacement modern concrete bridge, is a much larger construction that straddles the lock and is supported on concrete pillars.