Pont y Bettws

Cadw's description

Location

The bridge is at the SE end of Bettws Gwerfil Goch village and carries the road to Corwen over the Afon Alwen.

History

Built in 1785, according to the datestone; apparently to the design of the County Surveyor Joseph Turner. (Turner is known to have designed bridges, though this one is not mentioned in Colvin's Biographical Dictionary.) This probably replaces an earlier bridge at a lower level, and was designed to cope with flood conditions.

The construction of a reservoir upstream has since removed the flooding risk at Pont y Bettws.

Exterior

Built of local ashlar with a rubble stone parapet, with a datestone set below the coping on the road face of the main span. Three semicircular arches, the centre arch spanning 13.1 m and rising 5.7 m above the river, and each flood arch of 10.4 m span, rising approximately 5 m above the water. Each arch is constructed with 0.6 m voussoirs and a regulating course and spans on to water piers. The flush parallel spandrels rise to flush shale-coped and iron cramped parapets, providing a carriageway width of 5.5 m, the total width of the bridge being 6.3 m. The abutments are slightly outset and swing outwards to terminate in square stone piers. Pilasters rise from each water pier between the spans.

Reason for designation

Included as a fine example of a dated C18 road bridge, one of the few 3-arch bridges built during the period of improvements to the minor roads of the district which took place in the late C18 and early C19.