The bridge was built by the York-based Nelson & Company, after the company was granted the necessary contract in 1888. The work on the construction was overseen by John Nelson, and the plans for the bridge were drawn up by H. Copperthwaite, assisted by A. Hurst. The bridge, which had a water hydraulic engine, opened to river traffic, but came about as rail traffic started to have a larger presence than river traffic. The bridge operated using a “swinging” rather than “lifting” technique, hence its name, with the goal being to give a wider river opening than had existed with the previous bridge. The aforementioned “swinging” action of the bridge was, as mentioned, powered by hydraulics rather than manpower. At first, the hydraulics were provided by pressurized water, but this was later adapted to an electro-hydraulic system. The overall cost of constructing the Selby Swing Bridge was about ₤30,000.
A close-up of the water hydraulic engine.
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The tug “Sir Joseph Rymer” pictured towing a sailing vessel through the swing bridge.
The bridge open
Photos and information from Selby: The Past in Pictures: Part 1 and the linked page from the .
- Date
- 1888
- Ref no
- R2G/Riv/009, R2G/Rail/065
- Level
- Item
- Archive
- Selby : Abbot Staith
- Extent
- Four photographs
- Theme
- Railway, River
- Decade
- 1880