Holborn Viaduct

Holborn Viaductis a road bridge inLondonand the name of the street which crosses it (which forms part of theA40 route). It linksHolborn,viaHolborn Circus,with Newgate Street, in theCity of London,England financial district, passing over Farringdon Street and the subterraneanRiver Fleet.The viaduct spans the steep-sided Holborn Hill and the River Fleet valley at a length of 1,400 feet (430 m) and 80 feet (24 m) wide. City surveyorWilliam Haywoodwas the architect and the engineer wasRowland Mason Ordish.^[1]

History

Holborn Viaduct was built between 1863 and 1869, as a part of the Holborn Valley Improvements, which included apublic worksscheme which, at a cost of over £2.5 million (over £292 million in 2023), improved access into the City from theWest End,with better traffic flow and distribution around the new Holborn Circus, the creation ofQueen Victoria Street,the rebuilding ofBlackfriars Bridge,the opening of theEmbankmentsection into the City, the continuation of Farringdon Street asFarringdon Roadand associated railway routes withFarringdon stationandLudgate Hill station.^[2]It was opened byQueen Victoriaat the same time as the inauguration of the other thoroughfares with a formal coach drive procession on 6 November 1869.^[3]

The viaduct effected a more level approach on the crossing of this section of theHolborn/Fleet valleyfrom east to west, across Farringdon Street. Previously this involved horse-drawn traffic having to descend from High Holborn alongCharterhouse Streetto the smaller Holborn Bridge, crossing theRiver Fleetwhich had been culverted betweenLudgate Circusto this crossing in 1734 to ascend to the other side usingSnow Hill;^[4]it was one of the first modernflyoversin central London.^[5]

Pedestrian access between the two street levels was effected via four pavilions, at each side and either end, containing staircases for access from the viaduct to Farringdon Street below; with their parapets adorned with figurative statues to representcommerceandagricultureon the south side, both by sculptor Henry Bursill, withscienceandfine arton the north side, by the sculpture firmFarmer & Brindley;there are also statues oflord mayors William WalworthandHenry Fitz-Ailwin.In 1941the Blitzraids destroyed and damaged most of the area including the north side pavilions; these were copied and reinstated with associated property developments in 2000 (western) and 2014 (eastern), including lifts.

Holborn Viaduct railway station,opened on 2 March 1874, was at the eastern end with a low-level through route towards Farringdon,^[6]and was replaced in 1990 bySt. Paul's Thameslink railway station(later renamed City Thameslink).^[7]

In 1882, 57 Holborn Viaduct, on the north-eastern side, became home to the world's firstcoal-fired power station,theEdison Electric Light Station,operational from 1882 to 1886. The building in which it was housed was destroyed by bombing during the Blitz, and the large building called 60 Holborn Viaduct has since subsumed the site.

References

^Curl, James Stevens."Ordish, Rowland Mason".A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture.Encyclopedia.com.Retrieved29 June2012.
^Weinreb et al. 2008,p. 406.
^‘The Queen’s Visit to the City. Opening of Blackfriars Bridge and Holborn Viaduct’The Bedfordshire Mercury,13 November 1869, p. 7. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
^'The Farringdon Wards of the City of London a... history' pp. 2–10, by Tony Sharp, London 2002"Engineering timelines – Holborn Viaduct".Retrieved20 March2013.
^"A Dictionary of London", by Henry A Harben, published 1918,http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=63171
^Jackson, Alan (1984) [1969].London's Termini(New Revised ed.). London: David & Charles. p. 196.ISBN 0-330-02747-6.
^Butt 1995,p. 121.

Butt, R. V. J.(October 1995).The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present(1st ed.).Sparkford:Patrick Stephens Ltd.ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7.OCLC 60251199.OL 11956311M.
Weinreb, Ben;Hibbert, Christopher;Keay, John;Keay, Julia (2008).The London Encyclopaedia(3rd ed.). Pan Macmillan.ISBN 978-1-405-04924-5.

51°31′01.91″N0°06′18.25″W/ 51.5171972°N 0.1050694°W/51.5171972; -0.1050694

[Curl-1] Curl, James Stevens."Ordish, Rowland Mason".A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture.Encyclopedia.com.Retrieved29 June2012.

[FOOTNOTEWeinrebHibbertKeayKeay2008406-2] Weinreb et al. 2008,p. 406.

[3] ‘The Queen’s Visit to the City. Opening of Blackfriars Bridge and Holborn Viaduct’The Bedfordshire Mercury,13 November 1869, p. 7. Retrieved 30 December 2018.

[4] 'The Farringdon Wards of the City of London a... history' pp. 2–10, by Tony Sharp, London 2002"Engineering timelines – Holborn Viaduct".Retrieved20 March2013.

[5] "A Dictionary of London", by Henry A Harben, published 1918,http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=63171

[6] Jackson, Alan (1984) [1969].London's Termini(New Revised ed.). London: David & Charles. p. 196.ISBN 0-330-02747-6.

[FOOTNOTEButt1995121-7] Butt 1995,p. 121.

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