Leaderfoot Viaduct

The Leaderfoot Viaduct, also known as the Drygrange Viaduct, is a railway viaduct over the River Tweed near Melrose in the Scottish Borders.

Leaderfoot Viaduct
Coordinates55.60443°N 2.677939°W / 55.60443; -2.677939
CarriesBerwickshire Railway
CrossesRiver Tweed
Characteristics
MaterialStone and brick
Longest span43 feet (13 m)
No. of spans19
Clearance below126 feet (38 m)
History
Opened16 November 1863
Location

History
The disused trackbed

The viaduct was opened on 16 November 1863 to carry the Berwickshire Railway, which connected Reston with St Boswells, via Duns and Greenlaw.[1]

The engineers of the railway were Charles Jopp and Wylie & Peddie.[2]

The railway was severely damaged by flooding during August 1948, with 7 bridges on the line failing, and the line closed to passenger traffic on 13 August 1948.[1][3] Freight trains continued to run across the viaduct as far as Greenlaw until 19 July 1965.

In 1981, the poor condition of the viaduct meant that it was due to be demolished.[4][5]

It was upgraded from Category B to A listing in 1986.[6] Historic Scotland took over control of the viaduct from British Rail in 1996.[7][8]

Design
The viaduct behind the amphitheatre at the Roman site of Trimontium

The viaduct stands 126 feet (38 m) from the floor of the river valley.[2] The arches, each of 43 feet (13 m) span, are of brickwork, and the abutments, piers and walls are of rustic-faced red sandstone. Some later strengthening of the abutments and piers with old rails and buttresses on the southern valley side is very obvious.[2] It is straight over its whole course, and runs in a broadly northerly direction.[9]

The viaduct is in good condition, having been renovated between 1992 and 1995.[2][6] Repairs included replacement of masonry and brickwork, grouting, and underwater repair to one of the cutwaters.[10]

It is near to the Roman settlement of Trimontium, which is to the south-west of the viaduct.[9] To the east of the viaduct are the Drygrange Old Bridge, a road bridge dating from 1776, and its modern successor.[9][11] This group of three bridges is sometimes known as Tripontium.[2] To the east of the viaduct, the River Leader flows into the Tweed from the north.[9]

A portion of the film Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny was filmed at the viaduct, although the scene was said to be located in Switzerland.[12]

References
  1. "Gordon Station". rcahms.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  2. "Leaderfoot Viaduct". rcahms.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  3. Benn, Jeremy (2013). "Railway bridge failure during flooding in the UK and Ireland" (PDF). Proceedings of the ICE - Forensic Engineering. 166 (4): 163–170. doi:10.1680/feng.2013.166.4.163. ISSN 2043-9903.
  4. "Braced for bungee battle at the bridge". The Herald. 8 March 1994. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  5. "The Marlow Donkey" (PDF) (111). 2010: 17–18. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. Historic Environment Scotland. "Leaderfoot Viaduct (Category A Listed Building) (LB15145)". Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  7. Burman, Peter; Stratton, Michael (1997). Conserving the Railway Heritage. Taylor & Francis. pp. 217–218. ISBN 978-0-419-21280-5.
  8. "Historic Scotland acquires Borders viaduct". The Scotsman. 11 March 1996.
  9. Google (15 March 2015). "Leaderfoot Viaduct" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  10. Burman, Peter; Stratton, Michael (2014). Conserving the Railway Heritage. Taylor & Francis. p. 149. ISBN 978-1-136-74493-8.
  11. "Drygrange, Old Bridge". rcahms.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  12. "Where was Indiana Jones filmed? The Bridge & All The Dial of Destiny Filming Locations". Atlas of Wonders. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
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