Stone Bridge 76 Over The Macclesfield Canal - Congleton, UK
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 53° 09.426 W 002° 11.750
30U E 553770 N 5890049
This bridge known as Morris Bridge is a roving bridge that carries the towpath from one side of the canal to the other.
Waymark Code: WMR0VY
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 04/25/2016
Views: 5
The Macclesfield Canal
The Macclesfield Canal was one of the last narrow canals to be built, indeed, it was very nearly built as a railway! A variety of ideas were proposed and the present canal was approved by Act of Parliament in April 1826. The route of the canal was surveyed by Thomas Telford and construction was engineered by William Crosley. The completed canal was opened on 9th November 1831 at a cost of £320,000.
The route takes the canal from Marple Junction with the Peak Forest Canal in the north 26¼ miles to the stop lock at Hall Green near Kidsgrove passing along the side of the most westerly Pennine hills through High Lane, Higher Poynton, Bollington, Macclesfield and Congleton, all in Cheshire, and Kidsgrove in Staffordshire in the south. Nowadays we normally regard the last 1½ miles to Harding's Wood Junction with the Trent & Mersey Canal as a part of the Macclesfield Canal although it was built as a branch of the T&MC.
link
The Bridge
This bridge is a Historic England Grade II Listed Building
link with the following text "Accommodation and roving bridge, 1831 by W. Crosley. Coursed Keuper sandstone blocks. Horseshoe elliptical arch; projecting carriageway band, concave battered abutments. Plain projecting parapet coping to bridge and flush half-round copings to the approach walls from the towpaths."
The bridge was designed so that horses could cross from one side of the canal to the other without having to disconnect the tow rope from the canal boat.