Llandeilo Bridge (including causeways) (partly in Llandeilo community)

Cadw's description

Location

Spanning the River Towy and linking Llandeilo with Ffairfach; partly in Llandeilo C.

History

A substantial single-arched road bridge over the Tywi. Designed in 1843 by William Williams of Llandeilo, the county surveyor, to replace a 7-arch bridge whose abutment can be seen on the N bank just downstream. First stone laid in 1844 but there were great difficulties in securing adequate foundations and the initial estimate of £6,000 was spent before the arch was begun, and part of the work was destroyed by flood in 1846. The contractor Morgan Morgan failed, Williams died and the bridge was completed by Edward Haycock of Shrewsbury at a final cost of £22,000 in 1848. When built it was the third largest single arch bridge in Britain and the largest in Wales.

Exterior

Stone road bridge, a single graceful broad arch of 44.2m span, rising 12.65m to a total height of 14.3m and a total length of 110.64m including very long abutment on the Ffairfach side and short NW and longer rising NE abutments on the Llandeilo side. Rubble stone to abutments, tooled limestone buttresses, copings and other dressings, freestone (possibly sandstone) rusticated voussoirs to arch and to facing above with incised channelling, also channelled stonework to arch underside. Large flanking buttress piers rise through parapet. Similar buttress piers flank a segment-headed flood arch through the S abutment and also occur singly on the Ffairfach abutment. Main arch has bull-nosed broad stringcourse under rounded grey limestone parapet, elsewhere the stringcourse is plain and the parapet of rubble with limestone ridged coping. The piers have pyramidal caps in tooled limestone, the piers to the centre arch are broader and with rebated angles. String course is broken forward over piers. Flood arch is tall with similar detail to main arch. Steps down to river to W along lower end of Bridge Street, Llandeilo, and down to Bridge Farm, Ffairfach on E. On the E parapet is inscribed 'Erected 1848'. On the W the blank panel is said to have had the name of Haycock as architect, erased by local demand. Later inscription: 'Pont Llandeilo cymer hon le hen bont saith bwa'. C20 bronze plaque with depiction of old 7-arch bridge.

Reason for designation

Listed Grade II* as an exceptionally fine C19 bridge notable for the large span of its single arch, a major achievement of engineering when built.