Lockwood Viaduct

Lockwood Viaduct is a stone railway bridge that carries the Huddersfield to Penistone Line across the River Holme, in West Yorkshire, England. The viaduct is noted for its height, (being an average of 122-foot (37 m) high, but at its maximum, to the top of the parapet level, it is 136 feet (41 m)), leading one journalist to describe it as "One of the most stupendous structures of ancient or modern times." One local challenge has been to "lob" a cricket ball over the viaduct, with some claiming that they have. The viaduct was completed in 1848 and is now a grade II listed structure.

Lockwood Viaduct
A stone viaduct viewed at an angle looking up
Coordinates53.628°N 1.800°W / 53.628; -1.800
OS grid referenceSE132146
CarriesPenistone line
CrossesRiver Holme
LocaleLockwood, West Yorkshire, England
OwnerNetwork Rail
Characteristics
Total length17 chains (1,100 ft; 340 m)[note 1]
Height122 feet (37 m)
Rail characteristics
No. of tracks1 (built for 2)
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
History
Engineering design byJohn Hawkshaw
Constructed byMiller-Blackie and Shortridge
Construction start1846
Construction end1848
Construction cost£33,000 (1849)
Opened1850
Statistics
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated29 September 1978
Reference no.1134434
Location

History

Lockwood Viaduct is a stone built railway viaduct that straddles the River Holme, the B6108 and the A616, in the village of Lockwood, near Huddersfield in West Yorkshire.[1] The viaduct was built between 1846 and 1848 by the Huddersfield and Sheffield Junction Railway (to a design by John Hawkshaw) carrying their railway south to Penistone and the branch to Holmfirth.[2][3] The viaduct consists of 32 stone arches, the tallest of which is 121 feet (37 m) in height to the rail level, with a skew arch at either end.[4] Each of the 32 arches is 30 feet (9.1 m) across, whereas the two larger skew arches are 42 feet (13 m) and 70 feet (21 m).[5] The rock and spoil for the viaduct came from cuttings dug out for the railway to the south of the viaduct; Taylor Hill cutting, which is 396 yards (362 m) long and 61 feet (19 m) deep.[6] A description by Hawkshaw himself describes the sandstone varying from 3 inches (76 mm) to 12 inches (300 mm) in thickness.[7]

The viaduct cost £33,000 in 1849, (equivalent to £3,642,000 in 2021),[8] £3,000 of which was spent on the timber frames for the masonry.[9] The viaduct is shown as being 17 chains (1,100 ft; 340 m) long, straddling the River Holme, and whilst it was built for two tracks, only the northbound track is in use for both directions.[10] The 36-arch viaduct has been described as "soaring", especially when viewed from the ground level looking up. George Searle Phillips (a Huddersfield journalist in the 19th century),[11] described it as being "One of the most stupendous structures of ancient or modern times. The impression is almost irresistible that it is the work of demi-gods and giants."[12] The height from river level to the top of the parapet of the viaduct is 136 feet (41 m).[13] The entire width of the viaduct at rail level is 28-foot (8.5 m), with the internal width being 25-foot (7.6 m).[13]

Cricket ball lobs

One historical challenge regarding the viaduct is that of succeeding in throwing (or lobbing), a cricket ball over the viaduct. The challenge of the viaduct's height and width (136-foot (41 m) and 28 feet (8.5 m) respectively), means that the lob must be thrown to a height of 180 feet (55 m) to succeed.[14][15] Some stories relate a train arriving at Bradford Exchange with a cricket ball on the train that had come in through an open window (or smashed through). However, a railway historian cast doubt on this, and the local paper, in the interests of health and safety, dissuaded readers from trying to emulate the feat.[16][17]

See also

Notes
  1. Chains is the measurement used by the railway engineers in the 19th century, and still in use today on Network Rail.

References
  1. Thomas, Peter (2007). Along the Penistone Line. Stroud: Sutton. p. 6. ISBN 978-0750946193.
  2. Pevsner, Nikolaus (2001). Radcliffe, Enid (ed.). Yorkshire The West Riding (2 ed.). London: Yale University Press. p. 273. ISBN 0-300-09662-3.
  3. "Obituary. Sir John Hawkshaw, 1811-1891". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 106 (1891): 324. January 1891. doi:10.1680/imotp.1891.20265.
  4. "Lockwood and Paddock Viaducts". www.nationaltransporttrust.org.uk. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  5. Rennison, Robert William (1996). Civil engineering heritage. Northern England (2 ed.). London: Thomas Telford. p. 190. ISBN 0-7277-2518-1.
  6. "Opening of the line of railway from Huddersfield". Huddersfield Chronicle. No. 14. Column D. 6 July 1850. p. 5. OCLC 1064471280.
  7. Hawkshaw 1851, p. 296.
  8. Manby, Charles, ed. (1855). Minutes of Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 14. London: Institution of Civil Engineers. p. 505. OCLC 65274315.
  9. "Viaduct on the Huddersfield and Sheffield Railway". Sheffield Independent. No. 1373. Column F. 2 May 1846. p. 6.
  10. Kelman, Leanne (2020). Railway track diagrams, books 2 - eastern (5 ed.). Frome: Trackmaps. 34C. ISBN 978-1-9996271-3-3.
  11. Pollard, A. F. (23 September 2004). "Phillips, George Searle [pseud. January Searle]". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/22153. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  12. McClarence, Stephen (27 April 2019). "Grandeur designs in the Athens of the north". The Yorkshire Post. Yorkshire Post Magazine. p. 6. ISSN 0963-1496.
  13. Hawkshaw 1851, p. 297.
  14. "Reader feedback". infoweb.newsbank.com. 21 July 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  15. Atkinson, Neil (15 August 2013). "Debate goes on over Rastrick cricketer Gordon Sample's amazing Lockwood viaduct cricket ball feat". Yorkshire Live. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  16. "Lockwood Viaduct - Huddersfield Exposed: Exploring the History of the Huddersfield Area". huddersfield.exposed. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  17. "Don't try this one - COMMENT The policy of honesty. The might of right. The expediency of principle". infoweb.newsbank.com. 15 August 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2022.

Sources
  • Hawkshaw, J (January 1851). "Description of the Lockwood Viaduct on the Huddersfield and Sheffield Railway". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 10 (1851). doi:10.1680/imotp.1851.24100.
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