Abingdon Bridge crosses the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

at the town of Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England. It carries the A415 road from Abingdon to Dorchester, Oxfordshire, over the reach of the Thames between Culham Lock and

Abingdon Lock Abingdon Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England, less than 1 mile east and upstream of Abingdon, Oxfordshire, on the opposite bank of the river. It was originally built in 1790 by the Thames Navigation Commission. The weir runs acro ...

. The bridge is actually two bridges, linked by

Nag's Head Island Nag's Head Island is an island in the River Thames in England at Abingdon. It sits in the middle of the two Abingdon Bridges on the reach above Culham Lock. The part of the island on the upstream side of the bridge is occupied by the Nag's ...

. Abingdon Bridge is the northern part towards the town which has six arches and crosses the backwater and mill stream. The southern part is technically called Burford Bridge and has one main arch and four minor arches at the river and two minor arches on the floodplain. This crosses the main navigation channel. Furthermore, to complete the Thames crossing, Culham Bridge crossing the

Swift Ditch The Swift Ditch is a long artificial channel that formed a short-cut for river traffic to and from Oxford, across a meander of the River Thames in England. It was formerly the primary navigation channel. With the main river, it creates Anderse ...

should also be considered as an extension.

History

Abingdon Bridge was begun in 1416 and completed in 1422, using local limestone quarried at

Besselsleigh Besselsleigh or Bessels Leigh is an English village and civil parish about southwest of Oxford. Besselsleigh was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is just off the A420 road between ...

and

Dry Sandford Dry Sandford is a village in the Vale of White Horse district of England, about north-west of Abingdon. It is one of two villages in the civil parish of St Helen Without. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred ...

. The bridge was funded by Abingdon's religious guild, the Fraternity of the Holy Cross, and chiefly by two of the guild's members: a London merchant called William Hales and his wife Maud. The bridge replaced a ferry and its completion severely reduced trade at Wallingford. In 1453 "three new arches" were added at the southern end of the bridge, this becoming known as Burford Bridge. This description makes no reference to the two pairs of much small arches to each side of the central arches. In 1548 during the Edwardine Reformation

the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

suppressed the Fraternity of the Holy Cross. In 1553 a

Royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...

founded

Christ's Hospital Christ's Hospital is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 11–18) with a royal charter located to the south of Horsham in West Sussex. The school was founded in 1552 and received its first royal charter in 1553 ...

to replace the guild and take over most of its property and functions, including custody and maintenance of Abingdon's bridges. In 1790, when

was opened, the

Thames Navigation Commission The Thames Navigation Commission managed the River Thames in southern England from 1751 to 1866. In particular, they were responsible for installing or renovating many of the locks on the river in the 18th and early 19th centuries History The f ...

had one of the arches closest to Nag's Head Island widened and raised to ease navigation. The width of the arch was increased to , and the

airdraught Air draft (or air draught) is the distance from the surface of the water to the highest point on a Marine vessel, vessel. This is similar to the "Draft (hull), deep draft" of a vessel which is measured from the surface of the water to the deepes ...

was increased by at the crown of the arch and at the sides. Enlargement changed the arch from a late medieval 15th-century pointed profile to a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

elliptical one. Early in the 19th century the bridge was widened piecemeal. The Governors of Christ's Hospital had the Maud Hales Bridge widened in 1800 and the Hart Bridge in 1818–19. The Trustees of the Fyfield

Turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powers ...

had Culham Bridge and the remainder of Abingdon Bridge widened in 1829–30. The bridge was rebuilt again in 1927, this time by the County Councils of

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

and Oxfordshire, with

J. J. Leeming John Joseph Leeming, (1899 – 1981), Bachelor of Science, BSc, City and Guilds of London Institute, ACGI, Institution of Civil Engineers, FICE, Institution of Structural Engineers, MI Struct E, Municipal or urban engineering, MI Mun E, Instit ...

as resident engineer. Three of the early 15th-century arches were demolished and replaced with one wide span to further ease navigation.

Local legend

There have been reported sightings of the ghostly apparition of an unidentified woman's head and arms beneath the water flowing under the bridge.

References

Sources

* * * * {{S-end Abingdon-on-Thames Arch bridges in the United Kingdom Bridges across the River Thames Bridges completed in 1422 Bridges completed in 1453 Grade II listed bridges Grade II listed buildings in Oxfordshire Road bridges in England Bridges in Oxfordshire Stone bridges in England Reportedly haunted locations in South East England

History

Local legend

See also

References

Sources