1842.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



3P7 



SCOTSWOOD SUSPENSION BRIDGE, 



Erected over the Tyne, near Newcastle. — Engineer, John Green. 



( With an Engraving, Plate XVI.) 



We are indebted for the accompanying drawing and description of 

 tlie above bridge, to our valuable correspondent O. T. of Newcastle- 

 upon-Tyne, who has favoured us with several practical papers of 

 great utility, part of which have appeared in the Journal. 



Sootswood Bridge is erected over the Tyne, in a very picturesque 

 situation, 3 miles west of Newcastle; it was commenced in August 

 1829, and opened on 12th April 1S31. The two suspension towers 

 in design approach tlie Norman style of architecture, and have a very 

 noble appearance when viewed from the water; they are, together 

 with the land abutments, constructed of solid masonry. The distance 

 between the points of suspension of the centre opening is370fi.; 

 the two half arcs 130 ft. span each, which with the two towers make 

 a total length of G70 ft. There are four suspension chains, two on 

 each side, one over the other; each chain is 742 ft. long, the chord line 

 of the centre span 370 feet, and versed sine or deflection 2ti ft. t> in.; 

 the links of the chains consist of four flat wrought iron bars 10 ft. 

 long, i in. deep, and 1 in. thick, placed parallel to each other, 

 terminated with an eye at each end, and coupled together with live 

 ■wrought iron plates o in. deep in the centre, and 9 in. across the 

 widest part, and 1 in. thick, connected by bolts 2i- in. diameter, with 

 octagon nuts 44 in. diameter and 2 in. thick ; the bolt holes of the long 

 links are 9 ft. 14 in. from centre to centre (see Figs. .5, G, and 7.) The 

 links above the suspension towers have bars 7 in. deep and 1 in. thick 

 and 20 in. long from centre to centre, and connecting plates lO^-g in. 

 long from centre to centre ; the roadway is suspended by bars li in. 

 square to the centre coupling bar, which has a lug on the underside 

 with an eye, through which and the forked end of the suspending bar 

 passes a screw bolt ; the lower end of the suspending bar is attached 

 to a stirrup iron grasping each side of the longitudinal string piece, 

 ■which is carried by the iron wedges, as shown in fig. 4. The suspen- 

 sion bars are alternately suspended to the upper and lower chains. 

 Each bar was proved to 40 tons. The suspension towers are 78 ft. 

 high from the bottom of the footings to the top, and at the base 42 ft. 

 long by 20 ft. li in., and above 37 f(. by l(j ft. tj in., the footings 

 are surrounded with sheet piling. The roadway is 23 ft. broad^ 

 ■which is constructed of Meniel timber placed 8 in. apart, the ends 

 resting upon and bolted to the longitudinal string piece on each side, 

 as sliown in tig. 4, and the top overlaid with planks covered with a 

 composition of tar and gravel. 



The masonry was executed by Messrs. Welch and Son of Gates- 

 head, and the ironwork by Messrs. Walker and Yates of Birmingham. 

 The estimated expense was £12,900, but from unforeseen difficulties 

 in the foundation requiring extra work both in masonry and coffer- 

 dam, the total expenditure was £15,000. At the completion of the 

 bridge the committee for the construction, in order to testify their 

 high approbation of the masterly manner in which Mr. Green dis- 

 charged his duties as engineer, presented him with a handsome silver 

 claret jug. 



Reference to Plate. 



Fig. 1, Elevation of suspension tower. Fig. 2, Side view, and Fig. 

 3, Plan of footings, and the piers of the arch. Fig. 4, Enlarged view 

 of the timbers of the roadway. Fig. 5, Side view of the main 

 ■chain, coupling links and suspension bars. Fig. G, Cross section of 

 ditto, and Fig. 7, Plan of top of ditto. 



GrK'enhitlir Pier.— On Monday, Oct. 31, the retired and beautiful village of 

 •Greenhitlie assumed a most animated scene, upon the occasion of the 

 opening of this Pier. On the •irri\al uf the first steam-boat at the Pier, 

 wnicli con-.eyed several of the Directors and Shareholders of the Pier Com- 

 pany, they were received by a muneroiis assemblage of their friends. 



The Pitr is constructed of timber, and is remarkable for durability, chastc- 

 ness, and elegance, and. reflects great crclit on Messrs. Birch, the engineers 

 and designers. 



No. 63.— Vol. V.— Decembek, 1842. 



CANDIDUS'S NOTE-BOOK. 



FASCICULUS XLIII. 



" ] must have liberty 

 Witlinl, as large a charter as the iv mis, 

 To blow un ttliom 1 please." 



I. "Barry's Book" seems likely to become a by-word, and many 

 are now endeavouring to pick a leaf out of it, some with very fair 

 success, others with none. Rarely can imitators discern the dlBerence, 

 ■wide as it is, between mamitr and manmr-iam .• they just catch hold 

 of some of the more prominent characteristics of the former, and then 

 apply them at hap-ha-^ard and on all occasions. There is almost 

 always something to betray that they do not enter into the spirit of 

 what they evidently propose to themselves as a model. .So long as 

 they have some express model to go by, and adhere to that, they may 

 get on well enough, but no sooner do they begin to deviate from it, 

 than they render manifest how very different their own unguided t-aste 

 is from that which they have assumed, but which sits upon them most 

 awkwardly and ungainly. It may be said that Barry himself is but an 

 imitator, and that most of his ideas may be traced to direct authorities 

 for them. Still, if this may seem to detract from him in some degree 

 as an inventor-, it also shows how very differently from his prede- 

 cessors he looked at Italian architecture. How happens it that that 

 particular mode which he introduced, and has brought into vogue, 

 should, till then, hardly have been known in this country? The same 

 sources fi-om which he derived his taste had been open to others for 

 at least two centuries, without their benefitting by them, or being able 

 to perceive their value. Neither has he followed his models impli- 

 citly, even where he is most open to the charge of dir-ect imitation : 

 on the contrary, he has discriminated between their beauties and their 

 defects, of which latter some are glaring enough, even in works that 

 are stamped by no ordinary merits. Those singular inequalities of 

 taste which mar or disfigure some of the finest, and what may be 

 called the purest, examples of the Italian style, he has happily 

 avoided, giving us, as it were, the very cream of that style. It has 

 been remarked before now — probably by myself also— that one very 

 great, and, I am sorry to say, uncommon merit in Barry's designs is, 

 that thev are all of a piece, and all carefully finished up. In others 

 there may be very happy ideas, and great merits in parts ; but then it 

 is gener-ally only in parts, and in many instances the faults preponde- 

 rate over the beairties ; at least neutralize them, jarr-ing most harshly, 

 like so many false notes in music. 



II. Jlr. Barry's example and that of others, who, in re-adopting 

 Italian architecture, have gone to what may be distinguished by the 

 name of the Ante -Palladian style, may be taken as a tacit confession 

 on their part, that the Palladian itself is greatly inferior to the other; 

 and however disposed they may be to join with those who cry up the 

 Palladian school — for the sake, perhaps, of quietness — their practice 

 unequivocally condemns it. Iirdependently of its intrin^ic merit, one 

 thing wdiich at present recommends the species of Italian introduced 

 among us is its novelty; but as that attraction can be of no very long 

 duration, it could be wished that an attempt were made to throw more 

 variety into it, instead of invariably aiming at the same or nearly the 

 same character, not only as regards the general mass, but also the 

 individual features and members. The same style would admit of 

 great diversity of treatment in regard to windows, a source of variety 

 all the more worth being turned to as much account as possible, be- 

 cause little scope for variety is afforded in regard to the general com- 

 position. Fortunately, Bari-y himself has furnished me with an illus- 

 tration of what I could wish to see pursued and carried much further, 

 —in the south facade of the Travellers' Club-house, where the win- 

 dows are of more ornate character and more original design than 

 usual, and the whole is more playful, yet the style is not at all violated; 

 its breadth and repose are preserved, and there is simplicity combined 

 with richness, and what is more, that richness is combined with grace- 

 fulness. That front is also a happy instance of what miiy be done by 

 merely having recourse to rustication as a means of embellishment. 



