Description and History of Site:-
Four arch stone road bridge over the River Dove (which forms the border between Derbyshire and Staffordshire at this point). Medieval in origin, but very considerably modified and widened. It has been suggested (eg Rye, 1896) that a bridge of Roman construction stood at this spot. Certainly, a projection of the straight parts of the Icknield (Ryknild) Street passes directly through this crossing point on the river, but so far the lack of any documentary or archaeological evidence suggests that a ford would have been equally likely. The earliest reference to a bridge seems to be from 1255 when it was in need of repair and there was some dispute about who should bear the responsibility for undertaking this. Rye (1896) provides some details of the cost incurred for repairs through the C17th and C18th. There is some evidence suggesting that the westernmost arch was rebuilt in 1695. The roadway was widened, by extending it to the north over the cutwaters, in 1775. The modern A38 road has now bypassed the bridge.

Fowkes, Sissons and Mitchell (2005): 'Alongside the canal aqueduct is the now-superseded medieval road bridge taking the line of the former main Derby-Burton road over the river.'

Further Reading and References:-
Rye, H. A. 'Transactions of the Burton-on-Trent Natural History and Archaeological Society', IV (1), 39-47, 1896.
Fowkes, Dudley, Sissons, Mark and Mitchell, Ian. 'A Guide to the Industrial Archaeology of Derbyshire'. 2005, Association for Industrial Archaeology. ISBN 0 9528930 8 8

https://her.derbyshire.gov.uk/Monument/MDR2587
http://www.egginton.org.uk/html/history.htm

Help us improve this entry

The compilers welcome corrections or additional information on all sites.
Any information provided will be verified before appearing on the web site.

Email comments

Key Words :- road bridge

Viewing the Site :- Layby off the westbound carriageway of the main road, or from the aqueduct tow-path to the south.

Address :- Burton Road, Egginton, Derby, Derbyshire, DE65 6GZ
Grid Ref :- SK 26843 26989
Co-ordinates :- Lat 52.839750 , Long -1.602945
Local Authority :- South Derbyshire District Council
Pre 1974 County :- Derbyshire
Site Status :- Scheduled Ancient Monument SAM
Historic England List No - 1007077,
Site Condition :- Operational site, in use for original purpose
Site Dates :- pre 1255 -
Record Date :- 1 July 2021

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Nick Nelson