Pill Bridge is a stone

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ...

over the River Yeo between the parishes of

Ilchester Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, five miles north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman town, and later a market town, Ilchester has a rich medieval history and was a notable ...

and Long Sutton, in the English county of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. It is a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

. The current 17th century

packhorse bridge A packhorse bridge is a bridge intended to carry packhorses (horses loaded with sidebags or panniers) across a river or stream. Typically a packhorse bridge consists of one or more narrow (one horse wide) masonry arches, and has low Parapet#Bridge ...

replaced an earlier 13th-century bridge at the same site. It was the unloading point for goods destined for Ilchester, downstream, until the conception of the

Ivelchester and Langport Navigation The Ivelchester and Langport Navigation was a scheme to make the River Ivel (now called the River Yeo) navigable from Langport to Ilchester, in Somerset, England. Work started in 1795, but the scheme was effectively bankrupt by 1797, and constr ...

. A warehouse at the site was used from 1699 until 1805. The bridge consists of three semi-circular arches. It is wide and has a total span of .

References

{{reflist Scheduled monuments in South Somerset Bridges in Somerset Packhorse bridges