Shillingford Bridge
Encyclopedia
Shillingford Bridge is a road bridge near Shillingford
, Oxfordshire
, carrying an unclassified road (formerly the A329 road
) across the River Thames
in England on the reach above Benson Lock
. The bridge provides access between Shillingford to the north of the river and Wallingford to the south. Originally the south side was in Berkshire
but was transferred from Berkshire to Oxfordshire in 1974. The bridge is single track and vehicular passage is controlled by traffic light
s.
There are records which suggest the presence of a bridge on the site in the 14th century but this structure was short-lived and crossing was made by ferry from at least 1379 until a timber bridge was built in 1767. The present stone structure dates from 1827. A toll was payable on both the ferry and the subsequent bridges until 1874 when the County Council
s of Berkshire and Oxfordshire joined to buy the bridge from its private trustees and scrapped the charges.
of 1301 the Earl of Cornwall
is recorded as leasing a fishery "downstream of Shillingford Bridge" and in 1370 a bridge at Shillingford is mentioned again as a boundary of another fishery. This however is the last mention of a bridged crossing on the site until 1763. It is unusual for a bridge to completely disappear but the probable explanation is that the Governor of Wallingford Castle had a small wooden bridge built to give pedestrians and horsemen easy passage to Dorchester Abbey
but later had it removed due to security concerns for the Royal Castle. There is no doubt that a bridge did exist as Gough's Camden (1789) records that piles and beams were dredged up at the site of Shillingford Ferry.
The medieval bridge had almost certainly been dismantled by 1379 when Shillingford Ferry was granted for life to Roger Hurst, Porter of Wallingford Castle. The ferry remained as a perquisite of the Castle's porters until 1530 when it was leased to Roger Hacheman for 33s 4d per annum. Hacheman also leased a small dwelling on what was then the Berkshire (south) bank in 1545, the dwelling, rebuilt and expanded several times, was known as the Swan Inn by 1608 and is now the Shillingford Bridge Hotel. Thomas Baskerville's travel journal of 1692 reports "At Shillingford a great barge to waft over carts, coaches, horse and man".
in December 1763 "for repairing and widening the Road from Shillingford in the County of Oxford, through Wallingford and Pangbourne
to Reading
in the County of Berks and for building of a Bridge over the River Thames at or near Shillingford Ferry". The Act described the ferry as "dangerous for persons to pass in times of flood". The Shillingford to Reading Turnpike Trust was created in 1764 with powers to improve and maintain the existing road and to take responsibility for building the new bridge. Over 100 Berkshire and Oxfordshire landowners were trustees including Viscount Fane, Lord Charles Spence and the Honourable Peregrine Berie who were all named in the Act of Parliament.
Work on the bridge did not begin until 1766 when stone foundations, piers and abutments were built supporting a wooden trestle road bed. Completion of the bridge was announced in the Reading Mercury in April 1767. Jackson's Oxford Journal gives the precise opening date as 25 April 1767 and records that the bridge was "fenced with a neat Chinese Railing". The Turnpike Trust took a loan of £7,700 (equivalent to £ today) which covered both the cost of purchasing the ferry rights and the construction of the bridge. As well as a toll-gate on the bridge, the Trust also collected tolls at gates situated at Winterbrook
and Pangbourne Lane; however, the bridge yielded the highest income of all even though the bridge tolls were lower.
By 1826 the old bridge was in poor repair and the Trustees placed an advertisement announcing the wooden structure would be closed starting 10 May 1826 and a ferry provided whilst a new stone bridge was being built. The Act of Parliament renewing the Trustees' powers received Royal Assent on 2 April 1827 and described the old bridge as "ruinous" and "in part taken down" and the new one "nearly completed". The Act also contains one of the earliest mentions of the convention of driving on the left in the United Kingdom
laying down a fine of 20-40 shillings (equivalent to £ to £ today) for "any person who shall not keep his carriage on the left hand side of the road".
A few months later on 18 June 1827 the Reading Mercury noted that "the Substantial Stone Bridge over the River Thames at Shillingford has for a long time been sufficiently complete for the passage of travellers and their carriages and it will very shortly be finished in all its ornamental parts". The new bridge was entirely made of stone with three semi-circular river spans, the middle one 52 feet (15.8 m) wide and the flanking pair 36 feet (11 m) each. On the Oxfordshire (north) bank was a small tow-path arch and a 300 feet (91.4 m) causeway. The toll-keeper's cottage was located on the downstream side of the Oxfordshire bank.
In 1852 the Trustees' powers were renewed by Act of Parliament which also allowed for additional tolls for vehicles "drawn by steam or machinery". Twenty years later, in 1872, a law was passed allowing the trustees and owners of turnpikes and toll-bridges to surrender their rights to the local highway authority. Bridge traffic had been declining since the opening of the Reading to Oxford Railway in 1844 so the Trustees immediately made arrangements to pass the bridge to the counties of Berkshire and Oxfordshire. From midnight on 1 November 1874 tolls were permanently lifted.
Other than the demolition of the toll-keeper's cottage in 1937 the external appearance of the bridge and environs remains as when it was built in 1827.
Shillingford
Shillingford is a hamlet on the River Thames in Warborough civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England. It lies on the main road between Oxford and Reading, at the junction with the A329.-History:...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, carrying an unclassified road (formerly the A329 road
A329 road
The A329 is an east-west road in Southern England that runs from Wentworth in Surrey to Thame in Oxfordshire. The A329 starts at the A30 in Surrey and passes through the towns of Ascot, Bracknell, Wokingham, Earley, Reading, the village of Pangbourne, and Wallingford in Oxfordshire...
) across the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in England on the reach above Benson Lock
Benson Lock
Benson Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England, close to Benson, Oxfordshire but on the opposite bank of the river. The first pound lock here was built by the Thames Navigation Commission in 1788 and it was replaced by the present masonry lock in 1870...
. The bridge provides access between Shillingford to the north of the river and Wallingford to the south. Originally the south side was in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
but was transferred from Berkshire to Oxfordshire in 1974. The bridge is single track and vehicular passage is controlled by traffic light
Traffic light
Traffic lights, which may also be known as stoplights, traffic lamps, traffic signals, signal lights, robots or semaphore, are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings and other locations to control competing flows of traffic...
s.
There are records which suggest the presence of a bridge on the site in the 14th century but this structure was short-lived and crossing was made by ferry from at least 1379 until a timber bridge was built in 1767. The present stone structure dates from 1827. A toll was payable on both the ferry and the subsequent bridges until 1874 when the County Council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...
s of Berkshire and Oxfordshire joined to buy the bridge from its private trustees and scrapped the charges.
Background
In the Patent RollsPatent Rolls
The Patent Rolls are primary sources for English history, a record of the King of England's correspondence, starting in 1202....
of 1301 the Earl of Cornwall
Earl of Cornwall
The title of Earl of Cornwall was created several times in the Peerage of England before 1337, when it was superseded by the title Duke of Cornwall, which became attached to heirs-apparent to the throne.-Earl of Cornwall:...
is recorded as leasing a fishery "downstream of Shillingford Bridge" and in 1370 a bridge at Shillingford is mentioned again as a boundary of another fishery. This however is the last mention of a bridged crossing on the site until 1763. It is unusual for a bridge to completely disappear but the probable explanation is that the Governor of Wallingford Castle had a small wooden bridge built to give pedestrians and horsemen easy passage to Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey is a Church of England parish church in Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford. It was formerly a Norman abbey church and was built on the site of a Saxon cathedral.-History:...
but later had it removed due to security concerns for the Royal Castle. There is no doubt that a bridge did exist as Gough's Camden (1789) records that piles and beams were dredged up at the site of Shillingford Ferry.
The medieval bridge had almost certainly been dismantled by 1379 when Shillingford Ferry was granted for life to Roger Hurst, Porter of Wallingford Castle. The ferry remained as a perquisite of the Castle's porters until 1530 when it was leased to Roger Hacheman for 33s 4d per annum. Hacheman also leased a small dwelling on what was then the Berkshire (south) bank in 1545, the dwelling, rebuilt and expanded several times, was known as the Swan Inn by 1608 and is now the Shillingford Bridge Hotel. Thomas Baskerville's travel journal of 1692 reports "At Shillingford a great barge to waft over carts, coaches, horse and man".
1767 bridge
In 1749 William Blackstone became Recorder of Wallingford. He was a lawyer and frequently used the ferry to travel between Wallingford and Oxford but in times of flood and strong stream he was forced to take a longer route via Wallingford Bridge. Blackstone decided that a bridge was necessary and in November 1763 under his leadership the local gentry petitioned parliament which led to an Act of ParliamentAct of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
in December 1763 "for repairing and widening the Road from Shillingford in the County of Oxford, through Wallingford and Pangbourne
Pangbourne
Pangbourne is a large village and civil parish on the River Thames in the English county of Berkshire. Pangbourne is the home of the independent school, Pangbourne College.-Location:...
to Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
in the County of Berks and for building of a Bridge over the River Thames at or near Shillingford Ferry". The Act described the ferry as "dangerous for persons to pass in times of flood". The Shillingford to Reading Turnpike Trust was created in 1764 with powers to improve and maintain the existing road and to take responsibility for building the new bridge. Over 100 Berkshire and Oxfordshire landowners were trustees including Viscount Fane, Lord Charles Spence and the Honourable Peregrine Berie who were all named in the Act of Parliament.
Work on the bridge did not begin until 1766 when stone foundations, piers and abutments were built supporting a wooden trestle road bed. Completion of the bridge was announced in the Reading Mercury in April 1767. Jackson's Oxford Journal gives the precise opening date as 25 April 1767 and records that the bridge was "fenced with a neat Chinese Railing". The Turnpike Trust took a loan of £7,700 (equivalent to £ today) which covered both the cost of purchasing the ferry rights and the construction of the bridge. As well as a toll-gate on the bridge, the Trust also collected tolls at gates situated at Winterbrook
Winterbrook
Winterbrook is a small settlement in the English county of Oxfordshire, which adjoins the south end of Wallingford and sits on the west bank of the Thames. In 1974 it was transferred from Berkshire....
and Pangbourne Lane; however, the bridge yielded the highest income of all even though the bridge tolls were lower.
Present structure
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
laying down a fine of 20-40 shillings (equivalent to £ to £ today) for "any person who shall not keep his carriage on the left hand side of the road".
A few months later on 18 June 1827 the Reading Mercury noted that "the Substantial Stone Bridge over the River Thames at Shillingford has for a long time been sufficiently complete for the passage of travellers and their carriages and it will very shortly be finished in all its ornamental parts". The new bridge was entirely made of stone with three semi-circular river spans, the middle one 52 feet (15.8 m) wide and the flanking pair 36 feet (11 m) each. On the Oxfordshire (north) bank was a small tow-path arch and a 300 feet (91.4 m) causeway. The toll-keeper's cottage was located on the downstream side of the Oxfordshire bank.
In 1852 the Trustees' powers were renewed by Act of Parliament which also allowed for additional tolls for vehicles "drawn by steam or machinery". Twenty years later, in 1872, a law was passed allowing the trustees and owners of turnpikes and toll-bridges to surrender their rights to the local highway authority. Bridge traffic had been declining since the opening of the Reading to Oxford Railway in 1844 so the Trustees immediately made arrangements to pass the bridge to the counties of Berkshire and Oxfordshire. From midnight on 1 November 1874 tolls were permanently lifted.
Other than the demolition of the toll-keeper's cottage in 1937 the external appearance of the bridge and environs remains as when it was built in 1827.