Swing Bridge Over River Ouse

Heritage listing

Details SOUTHEASE 946/0/10050 SWING BRIDGE OVER RIVER OUSE 24-JUL-09 II SOUTHEASE 946/0/10050 Swing bridge over River Ouse 24-JUL-09 II Swing bridge. 1880, designed in 1878, by Henry E Wallis (CE) of Westminster, and constructed by Shaw & Co., with C20 timber replacement and safety additions. HISTORY The River Ouse south of Lewes was canalised between 1791 and 1795, to create the Lower Ouse Navigation, designed by William Jessop and supervised by Cater Rand, a Lewes schoolmaster and civil engineer (Brent 1993). This work cut off a lengthy meander of the river between Itford and Durham Farms, and severed farmland, necessitating statutory provision of a bridge across the new canal at Southease. The current structure, which replaces an earlier bridge approximately 10m upstream, dates from 1880 and incorporated a swing span to permit the passage of masted vessels. The bridge was fixed in position in 1988, under parliamentary powers, to prevent large vessels sailing further up river. However, the pivot table is still in position. DESCRIPTION The bridge is a three-span structure, formed of wrought-iron bowstring trusses, 3.62m apart, with a total length between abutments of 43.2m. The western span of 13.8m is fixed and the remaining two spans, of 29.4m, centrally pivot to allow larger vessels passage. The ends of the bridge are carried on brick abutments with curved wing walls having projecting piers in red brick in English bond with stone copings. The embankments, the top of which are 6m wide and with a side profile of 1:1, were constructed at an incline of 1:20. The top of the embankments (and therefore the top of the bridge deck) was designed to be 2.75m above high water. The two intermediate piers, both constructed in the waterway, are formed of groups of cast-iron column

From the Historic England List Entry under OGL v3.