Llandeilo Railway Bridge (partly in Dyffren Cennen community)

Cadw's description

Location

Situated some 400m E of Llandeilo Bridge, NE of Ffairfach.

History

Railway Bridge across the Towy, presumably built in 1856 for Llanelly Dock and Railway Co who extended the line from Ammanford (reached in 1840) to Llandeilo in 1855-6 'uniting Llanelly and Llandeilo in bonds of railway matrimony'. The engineer for this section may have been James Samuel or J Fenwick and the contractor may have been Thomas Hutchings who built the stations. The iron lattice girder became common in the 1860s but there may be some replacement metal as one lattice strip on the E side is marked 'Trimsaran Steel', probably c1900.

Exterior

Railway bridge, double width, the W track abandoned. Three lattice girders linked by iron girders under tracks, supported midstream on three large round iron piers connected by bracing. Stone abutments on each bank treated architecturally as carried up as screen walls in rock-faced grey limestone with sandstone ashlar heavy moulded coping and slightly higher capstones (with similar moulding) each end. Raised outer piers, string-course with bull nose moulding below, over base with flood-arch between battered plinths. Curving revetment walls each side.
The centre of the bridge has half-round iron facing over join of lattice girders, continuing the line of the round piers below, and capped by a cast-iron moulding to same profile as stone copings.

Reason for designation

Included as a lattice girder bridge with arched stone abutments of unusual quality.