Navvies’ Monument, Church Lane, Otley, W Yorks, UK
Posted by: 
bill&ben
N 53° 54.267 W 001° 41.685
30U E 585752 N 5973680
A monument to the navvies that built Bramhope Tunnel.
Waymark Code: WMTY2Q
Location: Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 01/22/2017
Views: 1
Bramhope Tunnel was built on the Harrogate to Leeds railway line, linking Horsforth and Weeton. The 2 mile tunnel was constructed between 1845 and 1849 by Thomas Grainger and James Bray for the Leeds & Thirsk Railway. The tunnel is noted for its length, the Grade II listed North portal, and the deaths of 24 men in its construction. The tunnel was constructed using twenty vertical shafts with horizontal tunnelling between the shafts. The eventual cost of the tunnel was £2.15 million.
The tunnel work took some 2300 navvies and 400 horses, who lived in 200 wooden bothies near Bramhope cemetery. Many of the navvies were Irish refugees, the tunnel being built during the Hungry Years, and farm labourers from around the country. The excavations were carried out by candlelight, the men being paid £1.50 per week to shovel 20 tons of rock in 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week.
Working conditions were poor, with wet working areas, foul air, gunpowder fumes and the danger of roof collapse. Geologically the tunnel cuts through hard sandstone, shale and clay, with several major faults along the route. Water had to be diverted by metal sheets within the workings. Over a billion gallons of water had to be pumped out during construction.
Deaths occurred during the construction, five men in 1846, twelve in 1847, seven in 1848/9 making a total of twenty four. Leeds Infirmary made special arrangements to transport injured workers from the site to the Infirmary.
The North portal of the tunnel is of Gothic design, said to have been to appease local landowner William Rhodes. The portal has been recreated in miniature in Otley as a memorial to the memory of the men who died constructing the tunnel.
The plaque on the replica tunnel reads
“ In memory of the unfortunate men who lost their lives in the construction of the Bramhope Tunnel of the Leeds and Thirsk Railway from 1845 to 1849. This tomb is erected as a memorial at the expense of James Bray Esq the contractor and of the agents, sub contractors and workmen employed thereon.”
Type of Historic Marker: Monument & History Plaque
Age/Event Date: 01/01/1849
Related Website: [Web Link]
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Historical Marker Issuing Authority: Not listed
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