Swalwell, Derwent Bridge

Swalwell, Derwent Bridge

HER Number
3630
District
Gateshead
Site Name
Swalwell, Derwent Bridge
Place
Swalwell
Map Sheet
NZ16SE
Class
Transport
Site Type: Broad
Road Transport Site
Site Type: Specific
Road Bridge
General Period
POST MEDIEVAL
Specific Period
Hanoverian 1714 to 1837
Form of Evidence
Structure
Description
The oldest bridge across the Derwent at Swalwell is the attractive stone road bridge of 1778, known as the Clavering Bridge. The Clavering family lived at nearby Axwell Hall (HER ref. 4993) and the bridge was ornately designed because of its proximity to the mansion. It was built to carry the main turnpike road from Newcastle to Hexham (HER ref. 3628). The bridge was disfigured by a road accident in the winter of 1913/14, the repairs from which can still be seen. The bridge has 3 segmental spans with pointed cutwaters. LISTED GRADE 2*
Easting
419840
Northing
562370
Grid Reference
NZ419840562370
Sources
<< HER 3630 >> 1st edition Ordnance Survey Map, c.1855, 6 inch scale, Durham, 6
Tyne and Wear Industrial Monuments Trust, 1978, Dunston and Swalwell Plan Area
N. Pevsner, 1983, The Buildings of England, County Durham, p. 473
Pers. Comm. I. Ayris