Wicker Arches form a long

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

across the Don Valley in the

City of Sheffield The City of Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire, England. The metropolitan borough includes the administrative centre of Sheffield, the town of Stocksbridge and larger village of Chapeltown and part of the Peak ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. They take their name from the thoroughfare

Wicker Wicker is the oldest furniture making method known to history, dating as far back as 5,000 years ago. It was first documented in ancient Egypt using pliable plant material, but in modern times it is made from any pliable, easily woven material. ...

, which passes through the main arch of the viaduct and was, until the completion of the

Sheffield Parkway The Sheffield Parkway is a major dual carriageway which runs between the City of Sheffield and junction 33 of the M1 in South Yorkshire, England. The road was opened in 1974. Route The route runs east of the City, connecting Park Square in ...

, the main route eastwards from the city to the M1. It is a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

structure.

History

The viaduct was built in 1848 to extend the

Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grimsb ...

from its previous terminus at Bridgehouses. The requirements were laid down by Sir John Fowler (engineer and designer of the

Forth Bridge The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge across the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, west of central Edinburgh. Completed in 1890, it is considered a symbol of Scotland (having been voted Scotland's greatest man-made wonder in ...

), but because of its prominent position in the city, he employed a firm of architects, Weightman, Hadfield and Goldie, to manage the detailed design. The design was then constructed by Miller, Blackie and Shortridge, and consisted of 41 arches. The arch which crosses the Wicker provides of headroom and spans . On either side are smaller arches around high, with heraldic decoration in the stonework above them. Many of the arches are now concealed by buildings. The structure is officially named the Sheffield Victoria Viaduct, and has in the past been called the Wicker Viaduct.Sheffield Local Studies Library http://www.picturesheffield.com image number s07510 Later a part of the

Great Central Railway The Great Central Railway in England was formed when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897, anticipating the opening in 1899 of its London Extension. On 1 January 1923, the company was grouped into the ...

, the viaduct supported

Sheffield Victoria Station Sheffield Victoria was the main railway station in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, on the Great Central Railway, between Chesterfield and Penistone. History Early history Engineered by Joseph Locke, the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manches ...

. Main line rail passenger services crossing the Wicker Arches ceased in January 1970 with the closure of Sheffield Victoria and its service to Manchester, but the viaduct still carried the local services to Huddersfield via Penistone until they too were diverted, via Barnsley, in the 1980s. The only other passenger services to cross the bridge thereafter were football excursion trains to

Wadsley Bridge Wadsley Bridge is a suburb of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, northwest of the city centre. The area is a mixture of residential housing and small industrial and commercial premises. The suburb falls within the Hillsborough ward of the City ...

for matches played at

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

's Hillsborough ground. This traffic ceased in 1996. The Victoria station buildings and platforms were demolished in 1989; however, freight services continue to use the, now single, line across the

to reach the Stocksbridge Steel works. The arches were restored in 1990 and are a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. They were added to the Buildings at Risk Register in 2007. In 2002, the

Cobweb Bridge The Cobweb Bridge, also known as Spider Bridge, is located in the city centre of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, near the disused Sheffield Victoria railway station. Completed in 2002, its design solves a difficult problem: passing the rive ...

was suspended underneath the viaduct to allow the construction of the

Five Weirs Walk The Five Weirs Walk runs alongside the River Don in Sheffield, England. From Lady's Bridge in Sheffield City Centre (), it heads downstream, northeast, over the Cobweb Bridge, through Attercliffe to Meadowhall (). As the name of the walk s ...

. In spring 2006, the two westernmost arches and the bridge over Brunswick Road were removed and replaced by a single steel span in connection to the building of the final phase of Sheffield's Inner Ring Road. Patchwork done on the Wicker Arches in Sheffield, England due to World War 2 Bombing

Patchwork done on the Wicker Arches in Sheffield, England due to World War 2 Bombing

The central arch was hit by an unexploded bomb during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

but did not collapse and was repaired. The repair can still be seen today when going under the central arch away from the city centre. It is on the left-hand side of the arch. The Sheffield University

Rag Rag, rags, RAG or The Rag may refer to: Common uses * Rag, a piece of old cloth * Rags, tattered clothes * Rag (newspaper), a publication engaging in tabloid journalism * Rag paper, or cotton paper Arts and entertainment Film * ''Rags'' (1915 ...

Magazine ''

Twikker ''Twikker'' was the RAG (student society)#Rag Mag, Rag Mag of Sheffield University Rag. The name is a corruption of ''Wicker (Sheffield), The Wicker'', a well-known street in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England crossed at one end by the Wic ...

'' is named after The Wicker, and its 1991 cover featured the Wicker Arches.

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{Viaducts in Yorkshire Bridges in Sheffield Bridges over the River Don, South Yorkshire Grade II* listed buildings in Sheffield Rail transport in Sheffield Bridges completed in 1848 Railway viaducts in South Yorkshire Matthew Ellison Hadfield buildings Grade II* listed railway bridges and viaducts

History

See also

References

Bibliography

External links