Pandon New Bridge

The New Bridge was built over Pandon Dene in 1812, by John Reed, mason, after which time the toll road from Newcastle to North Shields was completed (the first act for the construction of the North Shields Turnpike was actually in 1747). MacKenzie described it as a strong handsome structure of three arches, 30 feetin breadth. Oliver's 1830 map shows a toll bar at the junction of New Bridge Street and Pleasant Row. In 1837 the Pandon south of the New Bridge was culverted by Ellison and Buddle and the Dene partially backfilled. The Dene wasn't backfilled to the north of the bridge until the 1850s, at which time demolition of the bridge was considered. However the bridge was still in place in 1885 described only as "a roadway with almost level ground on each side". Road widening was considered by the Council in 1890 and the north side of the bridge was said to have been set back. It is possible that some parts of the structure survived until the Central Motorway was built in the early 1970s. In 1973 it was reported that during works on the new motorway, an abutment of the bridge was found. The remains appeared to be the north side of the west abutment.