Sonning Bridge
Sonning Bridge | |
|---|---|
 Sonning Bridge on the downstream side, from the Thames Path footbridge | |
| Coordinates | 51°28′33″N0°54′50″W/ 51.475728°N 0.913944°W |
| Carries | Thames Path,Minor road |
| Crosses | River Thames |
| Locale | Sonning |
| Heritage status | Grade II listed |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Arch |
| Material | Brick |
| Height | 14 feet 2 inches (4.32 m)[1] |
| History | |
| Opened | 1775 |
| Location | |
 | |
Sonning Bridgeis a road bridge across theRiver ThamesatSonning,Berkshire.It links Sonning withSonning Eye(Oxfordshire) and crosses the Thames on the reach aboveShiplake Lock,just short ofSonning Lock.It is a brickarch bridgecompleted in 1775, to replace an earlier wooden bridge. The bridge has been the subject of many paintings and prints by artists and is aGrade II listed building.
The road extends to the twoSonning Backwater Bridges.One is over the backwater downstream of theweirand the other is over themillracewhich is between the two main branches.
TheThames Pathcrosses the river at this point.
History
[edit]The earliest definite reference to a "timber" bridge is around 1530, although there are claims that there was a wooden old Saxon bridge here before 1125. It was spoken of as being rebuilt in 1604, although throughout the 17th century there are reports of decay and the need for repair.[2]
A stone marker at the centre of the bridge is marked "B | O'" (for the counties of Berkshire and Oxfordshire on each side of the river) with the vertical line indicating the exact boundary down the middle of the river. This is an ancient border which used to be betweenWessexandMercia.
In the 18th century, the bridge presumably gaveDick Turpina convenient escape route from Berkshire to Oxfordshire when he was staying at his aunt's inn in Sonning.[3]
At the beginning of the 20th century, there were complaints abouttraction enginescausing structural problems with the old woodenbackwater bridgesat Sonning and disturbing the peace.[4]The wooden backwater bridges were not replaced until the 20th century.
The bridge became a Grade II listed building on 1 August 1952.[5]
Traffic
[edit]Sonning Bridge has traffic lights because it is too narrow for traffic in both directions simultaneously. It is the only road bridge across the Thames betweenHenley-on-ThamesandReading.Thus there are large queues during the morning and evening rush hours. An additional bridge to relieve the traffic problems has been a subject of debate for many years. In 2019, Transport for South East proposed a bridge atPlayhatch,but while supported by local councils in Berkshire, the bid for funds from theDepartment for Transportwas opposed by Oxfordshire.[6][7]
Art installations
[edit]Beginning in the second decade of the 21st century, the anonymous artistImprohas affixed a series of objects to a supporting buttress of the bridge: the frontage of aletterbox(2013),[8][9]a front door with floating doormat (2016),[10]a telephone labelled "Emergency Flood Line" (2021), another postbox (2022),[11]aurinal(2023).[12]and acashpoint(2024).[13]
Adjacent buildings
[edit]Close to the bridge are theGreat House,a hotel on the southern bank, theMill at Sonning,now a theatre, on an island between two branches of the river, and theFrench Horn,another hotel on the northern bank.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^River Thames Alliance.Bridge heights on the River Thames.Archived24 January 2008 at theWayback Machine
- ^Fred. S. ThackerThe Thames Highway: Volume II Locks and Weirs1920 - republished 1968 David & Charles
- ^David England and Tina Bilbe,Berkshire Folk Tales,Stroud: The History Press, 2013,ISBN9780752492889.
- ^The Beautiful Sonning Bridges,The Sphere,page 275, 13 September 1902.
- ^Historic England."Sonning Bridge (The Part Within Wokingham District, Berkshire) (1117436)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^Tevye Markson (30 October 2019) [29 October 2019]."Huge new £800k bid has been made for third Thames bridge to connect Reading and Oxfordshire".BerkshireLive.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^"Third bridge plan doomed".Henley Standard.8 July 2021.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^Dave Gilyeat (26 July 2014)."Sonning Bridge postbox artist 'Impro' on his 'japes'".BBC News.Retrieved26 July2014.
- ^"Uri Geller mystified by letterbox on Thames Sonning Bridge".BBC News.8 September 2013.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^"Mystery of false door on bridge".Henley Standard.30 August 2016.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^"Prankster strikes again on bridge".Henley Standard.25 April 2022.Retrieved5 August2023.,
- ^"Urinal appears on the side of Sonning bridge over River Thames".BBC News.5 August 2023.Retrieved5 August2023.
- ^"Cashpoint appears on side of bridge".BBC News.6 July 2024.Retrieved6 July2024.
External links
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