Whitney-on-Wye toll bridge is a single-carriageway, wood- and stone-construction in

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

, England. The

toll bridge A toll bridge is a bridge where a monetary charge (or ''toll'') is required to pass over. Generally the private or public owner, builder and maintainer of the bridge uses the toll to recoup their investment, in much the same way as a toll road. ...

carries the B4350 south from its junction with the A438, near

Whitney-on-Wye Whitney-on-Wye is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, roughly a mile east of the border with Wales. The population of this civil parish at the 2011 census was 117. It is on the A438 road, and on the River Wye. The village is ...

, across the

River Wye The River Wye (; cy, Afon Gwy ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary. For much of its length the river forms part of Wal ...

. It comprises two Grade II listed structures.

Bridge

A bridge was first built at the site around 1780 following authorisation by

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

and with the agreement of Tomkyns Dew, the

lord of the manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

. The stone structure of five bays replaced a ferry that had been operated by Dew. This bridge and two successors of similar design were all destroyed by flooding on the river, the last in 1795. Another Act Of Parliament was passed in 1796, allowing the crossing to be partially rebuilt in 1797 to a different design that used stone and wood. The central three bays were at this time replaced with a wood decking and superstructure. This beam and trestle design comprising three spans is how the bridge appears today. The two outer spans are buttressed masonry archways of

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

and

ashlar Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...

; the central wooden section has two double pontoons to support it. A major program of reconstruction was undertaken in 1992–1993, costing around £300,000.

Toll house

The single-storey

toll house A tollhouse or toll house is a building with accommodation for a toll collector, beside a tollgate on a toll road, canal, or toll bridge. History Many tollhouses were built by turnpike trusts in England, Wales and Scotland during the 18th and ...

on the northwest side of the crossing is also an 18th-century structure. Constructed in part of brick and in part of timber-framed

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

scantling Scantling is a measurement of prescribed size, dimensions, or cross sectional areas. Shipping In shipbuilding, the scantling refers to the collective dimensions of the framing (apart from the keel) to which planks or plates are attached to form th ...

, it was altered and extended to the rear in the mid-20th century. The toll house has a tariff board dated 1796 that lists the crossing charges that applied around that time. The bridge and toll house are both Grade II listed buildings.

Ownership

The Longfellow family of

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...

were joint funders of the 1797 reconstruction and various descendants owned the bridge until 1981, when it was bought by a couple called Bryant. It changed hands again in 1990 and, for £300,000, in 2002. The present owners purchased it for £400,000 in 2012 and announced plans to develop the facilities. It was estimated at that time that the toll income would be around £2000 per week, which is free of taxes in accordance with the Act that authorised its construction. The tolls can only be increased with government permission and were last raised in 2009. Annual maintenance costs at the time of the 2012 change of ownership were estimated to be £12,000.

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.whitneybridge.co.uk Toll bridges in England Bridges completed in 1797 Bridges in Herefordshire Grade II listed buildings in Herefordshire

Bridge

Toll house

Ownership

See also

References

External links