Spon Bridge | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Carries | Spon Street |
| Crosses | River Sherbourne |
| Locale | Spon End, Coventry, England |
| Heritage status | Grade II listed building |
| Characteristics | |
| Material | Sandstone |
| No. of spans | 3 |
| History | |
| Opened | 13th century |
Spon Bridge is a bridge carrying Spon Street across the River Sherbourne in Coventry, central England.
Spon Street is one of the oldest remaining streets in the centre of Coventry and the site of many historic buildings, some of which were relocated there from elsewhere in the city during post-war redevelopment. The bridge consists of three stone arches. It is known to have been standing since the 13th century but was heavily rebuilt in 1771. Some of the stone for the bridge is believed to have come from Spon Gate, part of Coventry's historic city walls, which was among several of the city gates demolished in the late 18th century because they were impeding trade in and out of the city centre as the city grew. Other rumours suggest that the bridge contains stonework from Coventry's market cross. [1] [2]
In the middle ages, Spon Street was part of the main east-west route through Coventry and the suburb of Spon, which grew up immediately west of the city walls. Spon's boundaries were marked by Spon Gate in the east and Spon Bridge in the west, beyond which was a leper colony, later a hospital with a chapel. Spon Bridge was one of three medieval bridges carrying the route over the River Sherbourne. The surrounding area was a wooded valley in the 12th century. There are records of the bridge being surrounded by houses by 1411. [3]
Edwyn Jervoise, in The Ancient Bridges of Wales & Western England notes a three-arch stone bridge over the Sherbourne. [4] The bridge is built from sandstone and consists of five bays, flanked by plain columns. has been a grade II listed building since 1955. It forms a group with the various other listed buildings on Spon Street. [1]
St George's Bridge was a bridge over the River Severn in Shrewsbury, England; so named as it was close to the medieval St George's Hospital. It connected Frankwell, an old suburb of the town, to the town centre via Mardol. The gate on the town side was called Mardol Gate and is located where the Mardol Quay Gardens are. The gate on the other side was called Welsh Gate or St George's Gate. The bridge, sometimes now known as the Old Welsh Bridge, was demolished in 1795 and was replaced with the Welsh Bridge.
Cropredy Bridge is a bridge in north Oxfordshire, England, that carries the minor road between Cropredy and the hamlet of Williamscot. It spans the River Cherwell, which is also the boundary between the civil parishes of Wardington and Cropredy. The bridge has three spans, a reinforced concrete deck and is faced with Hornton stone. Each of the three spans is 12 feet (3.7 m). The present bridge was completed in 1937, but there has been a bridge on this site since at least 1312.
Elvet Bridge is a medieval masonry arch bridge across the River Wear in the city of Durham, in County Durham, England. It links the peninsula in central Durham and the Elvet area of the city, and is a Grade I listed building.
The Old Dee Bridge in Chester, Cheshire, England, is the oldest bridge in the city. It crosses the River Dee carrying the road that leads from the bottom of Lower Bridge Street and the Bridgegate to Handbridge. A bridge on this site was first built in the Roman era, and the present bridge is largely the result of a major rebuilding in 1387. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is a scheduled monument.
The River Sherbourne is a river that flows under the centre of the city of Coventry, in the West Midlands, in England.
Framwellgate Bridge is a mediaeval masonry arch bridge across the River Wear, in Durham, England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Stopham is a hamlet and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Pulborough on the A283 road. It is in the civil parish of Fittleworth.
Enslow is a hamlet on the banks of both the River Cherwell and the Oxford Canal in Bletchingdon civil parish, Oxfordshire. The medieval main road linking London with Chipping Norton and Worcester crosses the Cherwell at Enslow. There was a bridge here by the time that John Leland toured England in 1538–43. John Ogilby's Britannia Atlas of 1675 records a timber bridge here that he called "Emley Bridg". In 1718 the road was made into a turnpike and at some stage the timber bridge was replaced by one with pointed stone arches. In 1814 the stone bridge was widened on its downstream side. to almost double its former width. In contrast with the older upstream side of the bridge, the 1814 arches are semicircular. The road is now the A4095.
Coventry's city walls are a sequence of defensive structures built around the city of Coventry in England.
Spon Street is an historic street in central Coventry, in the West Midlands of England. The street was once part of a route that ran from Gosford to Birmingham – a route which remained intact until the 1960s. During the construction of Coventry's Inner Ring Road, built to relieve traffic on the narrow city centre streets, Spon Street was cut in half and the route severed.
There are 19 Grade I listed buildings in the City of Coventry. In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a building or structure of special historical or architectural importance. These buildings are legally protected from demolition, as well as from any extensions or alterations that would adversely affect the building's character or destroy historic features. Listed buildings in England and Wales are divided into three categories—Grade II buildings are buildings of special interest; Grade II* buildings are Grade II buildings of particular interest; and Grade I buildings, which are those of "exceptional" interest. Only around four per cent of listed buildings are given Grade I status.
There are ten scheduled monuments in Coventry. In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a "nationally important" archaeological site or historic building that has been given protection against unauthorised change by being placed on a list by the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; English Heritage takes the leading role in identifying such sites. Monuments are defined in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 and the National Heritage Act 1983. Scheduled monuments—sometimes referred to as scheduled ancient monuments—can also be protected through listed building procedures, and English Heritage considers listed building status to be a better way of protecting buildings and standing structures. A scheduled monument that is later determined to "no longer merit scheduling" can be descheduled.
The Charterhouse, Coventry is a grade I listed building on London Road, Coventry, in the West Midlands of England.
Vignoles Bridge is a footbridge over the River Sherbourne in Spon End, a western suburb of Coventry in central England. It stands just west of the inner ring road in the middle of a housing estate, to where it was relocated in 1969. It was built in 1835 and originally spanned the Oxford Canal. The bridge is a single-span cast-iron arch and is a scheduled monument.
The Old Exe Bridge is a ruined medieval arch bridge in Exeter in south west England. Construction of the bridge began in 1190, and was completed by 1214. The bridge is the oldest surviving bridge of its size in England and the oldest bridge in Britain with a chapel still on it. It replaced several rudimentary crossings which had been in use sporadically since Roman times. The project was the idea of Nicholas and Walter Gervase, father and son and influential local merchants, who travelled the country to raise funds. No known records survive of the bridge's builders. The result was a bridge at least 590 feet long, which probably had 17 or 18 arches, carrying the road diagonally from the west gate of the city wall across the River Exe and its wide, marshy flood plain.
Ribchester Bridge is a toll-free, three-span bridge over the River Ribble near Ribchester, Lancashire, England. A Grade II listed structure, located about three quarters of a mile east of the village, it actually crosses the river between the civil parishes of Clayton-le-Dale and Dutton. The bridge carries the two-lane traffic of the B6245 Ribchester Road.
Edisford Bridge is a toll-free, nine-span bridge over the River Ribble near Clitheroe, Lancashire, England. A Grade II listed structure and a Scheduled monument, located about a mile WSW of the centre of town, it crosses the river to the civil parish of Great Mitton. The bridge carries the two-lane traffic of the B6243 Edisford Road.
The Sherbourne Viaduct is a railway bridge that carries the Birmingham Loop line across the River Sherbourne in Coventry, central England. Built in 1838, it is a grade II listed building.
Mile Lane Bridge is a road-over-rail bridge in Coventry, central England. It is possibly the first use of a flying arch over a railway cutting and is a grade II listed building.
Spon End Viaduct is a railway bridge which spans the River Sherbourne in Spon End, just west of the city centre of Coventry in central England.