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THE SEVERN VALLEY RAILWAY BRIDGES.
The Severn Valley Railway, from Shrewsbury to Bewdley, traverses a district of much interest, and which in many places possesses great natural beauty. [[Coalbrookdale]], so long famous for its productions in metal, is at the same time one of the most picturesque spots in Shropshire. It has been thus described;
" Coalbrookdale is a winding valley, wooded and well watered. On sunlit knolls backed by sombre wood or verdant fields, by streams and pools, nestling in shady nooks and dells, or half embowered by trees, are seen neat cottages, substantial homesteads, and wealthy mansions. In few places grouped within the same limits will you find so many features of interest. The triple syllable 'Coalbrookdale' is indicative of the distinctive features and natural advantages for which the place is remarkable. The ring of the hammer and noise of the forge reveal no less the source of the prosperity you see around, and tell that house and land, field and garden plot, wealth and contentment, have been won upon the great battle-field of labour, in wrestling with the sternest elements of earth. 'Coalbrook' is composed of two streams that come in two opposite directions, and upon making the passage of the 'dale' combine their forces. It is not so much a brook as a series of lakes or pools, made to pay at easy stages the tribute of its strength on its journey to the river. Thus pounded up it presents a mechanical force which our fathers, before the introduction of the steam-engine, knew so well how to appreciate, and which to them was so essential to successful iron making operations."
It was here that the first iron bridge in England, if not in the world, was erected about 1780, a nearly semicircular span of 100 ft., across the Severn, and it was at Broseley, close at hand, where stout John Wilkinson, the famous Shropshire ironmaster, launched the first iron boat. At Bridgenorth, lower down the river, were the works of Telford's friend and favourite contractor, Hazeldine, and at Buildwas is one of Telford's large iron bridges of 130 ft. span, erected by Hazeldine. The works, however, of the Severn Valley of eighty years or even thirty years ago contrast strangely with those of the present day, and it is indeed singular that it was not until l861 that this productive and charming district was finally "opened up" by railway. It is our present object to describe the two great railway bridges which cross the Severn, the one at Areley, near Bewdley, the other on the Coalbrookdale line, which is a short, but costly, branch of the Severn Valley, the line of two miles having, in consequence of its difficult works, cost 80000l£80,000. The first-named work, was completed in 1861, and is known as the Victoria Bridge and the latter, opened in October, 1864, was named the [[Albert Edward Bridge]]. They are of identical dimensions, and although not the largest arches ever constructed, they are the largest cast iron arched spans yet erected for carrying railway traffic. The clear span is 200 ft, and in design and site they are among we more striking structures upon the railways of Great Britain.
The engineer-in-chief to the Severn Valley Railway was [[John Fowler|John Fowler, Esq.]]; and it is by his kind permission that we are able to give, from the working drawings, the elevations, sections, and details of these important works, and which we have supplemented with a general view (from a photograph) of the Albert Edward Bridge and of the country about.
With a span of 200 ft. in the clear, and a width of 27 ft. 6 in., the bridge stretches from abutment to abutment, giving a head-way from the surface of the water to the underside of the main ribs of 40 ft. The rise of the arch in the centre is 20 ft or one-tenth of the span, and the depth of the curved girder 4 ft.
Some of these pieces (slightly defective castings) were broken under it contral load of 430 tons. As before stated, the bridge, though always in motion from the influence of expansion or contraction, never turns in the least degree on the rounded heels at the springing of each rib, but rises and falls by virtue of its own elasticity. During the course of erection, the arched ribs have been known on a day to lift themselves clear of the scaffolding for a height of 1½ in.
The entire cost of the whole work was 11£11,494l494, the original estimate having been 11£11,000l000, the remainder being made up in extras, unforeseen at the commencement. The scaffolding used in the erection of the bridge cost 1000l£1000, from which, however, 300l. £300 was deducted for the value of material resold, and it contained 6800 cubic feet of timber and 5 tons of iron.
The following is a detailed description of the quantities and material employed:<br>
