- Kingsgate Bridge view from deck
- Kingsgate Bridge seen from Durham Students' Union, the Cathedral above
Kingsgate Bridge | |
---|---|
Coordinates | 54°46′23″N1°34′21″W / 54.7731°N 1.5726°W |
OS grid reference | NZ275421 |
Carries | Pedestrians |
Crosses | River Wear |
Locale | Co. Durham |
Owner | Durham University |
Heritage status | Grade I listed |
Preceded by | Elvet Bridge |
Followed by | Prebends Bridge |
Characteristics | |
Material | Reinforced concrete |
Longest span | 106.7 m (350 ft) |
History | |
Architect | Ove Arup |
Designer | Ove Arup |
Engineering design by | Ove Arup & Partners |
Construction end | 1963 |
Location | |
Kingsgate Bridge is a reinforced concrete construction footbridge across the River Wear, in Durham, England. It is a Grade I listed building. [1] It was personally designed in 1963 by Ove Arup, [1] the last structure he ever designed. [2] Kingsgate Bridge connects Bow Lane on the peninsula in the centre of Durham to Dunelm House on New Elvet, which building Arup's studio also contributed, and opened in 1966. Kingsgate Bridge is thought to have been one of Arup's favourite designs of all: he had spent many hours working on every detail of the plans. [3]
Its construction was unusual; the two halves were each built parallel to the river, then rotated through 90° to make the crossing. [4] The meeting point of the two halves is marked by a simple bronze expansion joint using a linear gear bearing. [5] [6]
In 1965, the bridge was the winner of the Civic Trust Award. [7]
In 1993, it won the Certificate of Outstanding Performance (Mature Structures Category) of the Concrete Society. [8]
A bust of Arup, cast in resin, was installed on the side of Dunelm House, the students' union building adjacent to the bridge, in September 2011. The sculpture is a copy of a 1987 bust by Diana Brandenburger, held by the National Portrait Gallery. [9] [10] It is a replacement for a previous copy of the same bust, in bronze, which was unveiled by Karin Perry, Arup's daughter, on 16 April 2003, the 108th anniversary of Arup's birth, but which was stolen from its plinth during the summer of 2006. [11]
During a university rag week in the late 1960s students suspended a car beneath the bridge. [12]
Durham is a cathedral city and civil parish in the county of Durham, England. It is the county town and contains the headquarters of Durham County Council, the unitary authority which governs the district of County Durham. The built-up area had a population of 50,510 at the 2021 Census.
Durham Students' Union, operating as Durham SU, is the students' union of Durham University in Durham, England. It is an organisation, originally set up as the Durham Colleges Students’ Representative Council in 1899 and renamed in 1969, with the intention of representing and providing welfare and services for the students of the University of Durham.
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The year 1966 in architecture involved some significant architectural events and new buildings.
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Durham University is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to open in England for more than 600 years, after Oxford and Cambridge, and is thus the third-oldest university in England. As a collegiate university, its main functions are divided between the academic departments of the university and its 17 colleges. In general, the departments perform research and provide teaching to students, while the colleges are responsible for their domestic arrangements and welfare.
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