Blackfriars Bridge, Manchester
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Blackfriars 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 ...
in
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...
, England. Completed in 1820, it crosses the
River Irwell The River Irwell ( ) is a tributary of the River Mersey in north west England. It rises at Irwell Springs on Deerplay Moor, approximately north of Bacup and flows southwards for to meet the Mersey near Irlam. The Irwell marks the boundary be ...
, connecting
Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
to
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. It replaced an earlier wooden footbridge, built in 1761 by a company of comedians who performed in Salford, and who wanted to grant patrons from Manchester access to their theatre. The old bridge was removed in 1817. The new design, by Thomas Wright of Salford, was completed in June 1820, and opened on 1 August that year. The bridge is built from
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 uses three arches to cross the river. To obscure the then badly polluted river from view, at some point in the 1870s its original stone balustrade was replaced with cast iron. In 1991 this was replaced with stone-clad reinforced concrete. The Act of Parliament that enabled its construction allowed for its owners to charge a toll for crossing the bridge, but this arrangement was brought to an end in March 1848. Blackfriars Bridge was declared 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 ...
in 1988.


History

The current Blackfriars Bridge replaced an earlier, wooden structure, dating from 1761. This was erected by a company of comedians keen to allow people from
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
to easily cross the Irwell, to visit the Riding School on Water Street in
Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
, where they performed. For the rest of its life it was maintained at the public's expense. A series of 29 steps led from the Manchester side of the river down to its flagged surface. It was named Blackfriars Bridge, as
Blackfriars Bridge Blackfriars Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, between Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Railway Bridge, carrying the A201 road. The north end is in the City of London near the Inns of Court and Temple Chu ...
in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
was then being built. The old bridge was narrow, suitable for pedestrians only and liable to flooding. An Act of Parliament of 1817 enabled its replacement by a superior structure. The Company of Proprietors of the Blackfriars Bridge were empowered to raise funds for the bridge's construction, and allowed to charge tolls to recoup their investment, maintain the bridge and pay off any further debts. The proprietors were also allowed to earn interest on surplus funds, but tolls were to cease once the bridge and the mortgages taken out to fund it, were paid off. As per the act, they raised £17,700 in shares of £50 each, and obtained mortgages for an additional £12,000, but this proved insufficient; they therefore borrowed a further £3,225. A competition was held to produce designs for the new bridge, which would be required to carry more traffic than the existing structure. Prizes of £150 and £100 were offered for the first and second best designs.
William Fairbairn Sir William Fairbairn, 1st Baronet of Ardwick (19 February 1789 – 18 August 1874) was a Scottish civil engineer, structural engineer Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research structural components and structural systems ...
entered with a design for a single-span cast iron bridge. His employer at the time, Thomas Hewes, was also an entrant. Thomas Wright of Salford won the competition with a three-arched stone bridge complete with Ionic columns. The old wooden structure was taken down in 1817, and construction on the new bridge began on 4 January 1819. The keystone was laid by J. E. Scholes, boroughreeve of Salford, on 17 June 1820, and the bridge was opened on 1 August. The bridge's tollgate was removed on 10 March 1848. At a meeting of the committee for the removal of the bridge tolls, the bridge's creditors agreed to give up any interest in the structure; the remaining surplus of funds was used to purchase a "token of respect" for the committee's chairman, Thomas Chadwick.


Design

Blackfriars Bridge is a
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) ...
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 ...
and cast-iron construction, crossing the water below in three classical-style semicircular arches. The easternmost end of the bridge is partly embedded in the river bank. The central arch has paired Ionic
pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...
s on each side. The
voussoir A voussoir () is a wedge-shaped element, typically a stone, which is used in building an arch or vault. Although each unit in an arch or vault is a voussoir, two units are of distinct functional importance: the keystone and the springer. The ...
s on each arch use
vermiculated Vermiculation is a surface pattern of dense but irregular lines, so called from the Latin ''vermiculus'' meaning "little worm" because the shapes resemble worms, worm-casts, or worm tracks in mud or wet sand. The word may be used in a number of ...
rustication. At some point during the 1870s the bridge's open balustrade was replaced with cast iron, to remove the badly polluted river from view. In 1991 this was replaced with stone-clad reinforced concrete, partially restoring the bridge to its original appearance. It lies within the Parsonage Gardens Conservation Area, and was granted Grade II listed status on 4 February 1988.


See also

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Listed buildings in Manchester-M3 Manchester is a city in Northwest England. The M postcode area, M3 postcode area of the city includes the western part of the city centre. The area contains 79 Listed building#England and Wales, listed buildings that are recorded in the Nationa ...
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Listed buildings in Salford, Greater Manchester Salford is a city in the City of Salford Metropolitan Borough, Greater Manchester, England. The city, which includes the suburbs of Broughton, Charlestown, Kersal, Ordsall, Pendleton, and Weaste, contains 129 listed buildings that are rec ...
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Palatine Bridge, Salford Palatine Bridge is a wrought-iron road bridge in Greater Manchester. Opened in 1864 and rebuilt in 1911, it crosses the River Irwell between Salford and Manchester. History Background A bridge between Chapel Street in Salford and Hunts Bank i ...
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Victoria Bridge, Manchester Victoria Bridge is a stone arch bridge in Greater Manchester, England. Completed in 1839 and named after Queen Victoria, it crosses the River Irwell, connecting Salford to Manchester. The bridge replaced an earlier medieval structure, Salford ...
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Albert Bridge, Manchester Albert Bridge is a Grade II listed skew arch bridge in Greater Manchester, England. A replacement for an earlier structure, New Bailey Bridge, it was completed in 1844. It crosses the River Irwell, connecting Salford to Manchester. An 1843 in ...


References

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External links


20th century photograph of Blackfriars bridge, showing its cast iron balustrade.
{{Salford B&S Grade II listed bridges in Greater Manchester Buildings and structures in Manchester Buildings and structures in Salford Former toll bridges in England Bridges across the River Irwell Bridges completed in 1820