Blackburn Old Bridge is a twin arch stone bridge which supposedly dates back to 1633, although that may have been a previous structure on the same site. The bridge was widened in the later 18th century, and has seen further work in the early 20th century by which time it was apparently in a very poor state. The eastern, downstream face, appears to be the older part of the structure, but still looks to be Victorian in style, rather than 17th century. The two arches have ashlar arch rings surmounted by a prominent drip mould, with a triangular cutwater between. The stonework above is coursed rubble, with a line of wide coping stones atop the parapet. It is not possible to get a clear view of the upstream side due to overhanging trees and bushes, but the stonework of the parapet looks newer.
The roadway across the bridge was originally a narrow single lane, but was widened, as noted above, at some point in the past to allow two vehicles to pass. Modern traffic has meant that a wide pavement has since been inserted on the downstream side, with priority given to traffic coming off the A705.
New Bridge
The new bridge
The old bridge had already been bypassed by a ford by the time it was widened, and this was subsequently formalised by the construction of a single arch structure in 1818 on the site of the ford. The bridge is relatively plain, built of coursed square cut stone work, with what appears to be modern reconstituted stone parapets above. These flare out over the abutments, and as a result the roadway over the bridge is barely wide enough for two lorries to pass. There are no pavements - not even on the approaches, encouraging pedestrians to divert across the old bridge.
