Angarrack viaduct explained

Bridge Name:Angarrack Viaduct
Carries:Cornish Main Line
Locale:Angarrack, Cornwall
Material:Granite
Spans:11
Builder:H Stevens, Ashburton
Begin:1883
Open:1888
Preceded:Penponds Viaduct
Followed:Guildford Viaduct
Coordinates:50.1933°N -5.3855°W
Embedded:
Embed:yes
Designation1:UK GRADE II
Designation1 Offname:The viaduct at SW58353801
Designation1 Free1name:Legacy System
Designation1 Free1value:LBS
Designation1 Free2name:Legacy System number
Designation1 Free2value:70158

Angarrack railway viaduct crosses the valley of the Angarrack River at Angarrack in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.[1]

Geography

The eleven-arch granite-built viaduct [2] carries the Cornish Main Line railway across the steep-sided valley of the Angarrack River, a tributary of the River Hayle, between the present day stations of and .[1] The village extends up the valley and under the viaduct.

History

The original viaduct at Angarrack was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the West Cornwall Railway and was "... built wholly of timber on stone footings".[2] It was nearly 800feet long and 100feet high. The stone from the original Brunel footings was re-used to construct the sea wall on the approach to Penzance railway station. Today, no evidence remains of Brunel's original structure.[2]

Building of the replacement commenced in January 1883 by Mr H Stevens of Ashburton, who also built the replacement viaducts at Redruth and Guildford (west of Angarrack).[3] A tram-road of a few hundred yards was laid to a nearby quarry owned by Mr Gregor to provide infill for the granite viaduct. The foundations were expected to be at least deep and the work would take two to three years.[4] It was opened by the Great Western Railway in 1888 and its eleven granite arches each have a span of 56.5feet. It is a Grade II listed building.

See also

References

Source

Notes and References

  1. Book: Land's End . Landranger . February 2009 . 203 . . Southampton . 978-0-319-23148-7 .
  2. Book: Binding, John. Brunel's Cornish Viaducts. Atlantic Transport Publishing/Historical Model Railway Society. 1993. Penryn. 106–107 . 0-906899-56-7.
  3. News: The New Redruth Railway Viaduct . The Cornishman . 322 . 18 September 1884 . 7.
  4. News: The New Viaduct At Angarrack . The Cornishman . 237 . 25 January 1883 . 4.