Cow Pasture Bridge Over The Trent And Mersey Canal - Weston-on-Trent, UK
Posted by: dtrebilc
N 52° 51.083 W 001° 23.050
30U E 608807 N 5856962
This single span brick bridge over the Trent & Mersey Canal was built as an accommodation bridge for nearby farms.
Waymark Code: WM11ECN
Location: East Midlands, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/07/2019
Views: 2
"As its name implies, the Trent and Mersey canal (T & M) was built to link the River Trent at Derwent Mouth (in Derbyshire) to the River Mersey. The second connection is made via the Bridgewater Canal, which it joins at Preston Brook in Cheshire. Note that although mileposts measure the distance to Preston Brook and Shardlow, Derwent Mouth is a mile or so beyond Shardlow.
The plan of a canal connection from the Mersey to the Trent ("The Grand Trunk") came from canal engineer James Brindley. It was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1766 and the first sod was cut by Josiah Wedgwood in July that year at Brownhills, Burslem. In 1777, the canal was completed, including more than 70 locks and five tunnels, with the company headquarters in Stone."
link
The Bridge
Although the bridge was originally built for access to farm fields the area on the east side of the canal has now been converted to quarry pits. The bridge carries heavy vehicles to the quarry, and also has a public footpath passing over it.
It is bridge number 7 on the canal and the brick work has been extensively repaired with modern brick, probably to strengthen the bridge for modern quarry trucks.