View source for Perth Bridge

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}
{{Infobox Bridge
| bridge_name = Perth Bridge
| image = File:Perth Bridge (geograph 7917123).jpg
| caption = Pictured in 2024
| official_name = 
| other_name = Smeaton's Bridge<br />The Old Bridge<br />The Auld Brig
| carries = Two lanes of the [[A85 road|A85]]
| crosses = [[River Tay]]
| locale = [[Perth, Scotland]]
| maint = [[Perth and Kinross Council]]
| id = 
| design = [[Arch bridge|Arch]]
| mainspan = <!--{{convert|714|ft|m|0}}-->
| length = 
| width = 
| height = 
| clearance = 
| below = 
| traffic = 
| open = {{start date and age|1771|p=yes}}
| closed = 
| toll = 
| heritage = [[Category A listed]]
| map_cue = 
| map_image = 
| map_text = 
| map_width = 
| coordinates = {{coord|56.3990|-3.4252|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline,title}}
| lat = 
| long = 
}}

'''Perth Bridge''' (also known as '''Smeaton's Bridge''', locally, '''the Old Bridge''', and in the local dialect of Scots, '''the Auld Brig''') is a toll-free [[bridge]] in the city of [[Perth, Scotland]]. A [[Category A listed]] structure,<ref>{{Historic Environment Scotland|num=LB39339|desc=Perth Bridge Over River Tay|cat=A|access-date=2 April 2019}}</ref> it spans the [[River Tay]], connecting Perth, on the western side of the river, to [[Bridgend, Perth|Bridgend]], on its eastern side, carrying both automotive and pedestrian traffic of West Bridge Street (the [[A85 road|A85]]). An earlier bridge was demolished at the same location in 1621 (its location marked by a stone tablet at the bottom of the High Street),<ref name=civic>[http://www.perthcivictrust.org.uk/staging/?page_id=480 Civic History of Perth from Medieval Times] – Perth Civic Trust</ref> and many unsuccessful attempts were made to replace it. A subscription was started by [[James VI]] and several noblemen to help with the construction cost, but the king's death in 1625 suspended the scheme and a series of [[ferryboats]] were instead used.<ref name=handbook>''The Tourist's Hand-book to Perth and Neighbourhood'' (1849), p. 43</ref> 

The replacement bridge was completed in October 1771,<ref>[http://www.pkc.gov.uk/Education+and+learning/Libraries+archives+and+learning+centres/Libraries+-+local+and+special+collections/Local+studies+-+additional+resources/Amazing+past+Perthshire/Lottery+Levity+2.htm Perth and Kinross Council website - Lottery Levity 2]</ref><ref>[http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=429 EngineeringTimelines.com]</ref> which places it in the [[Georgian era]] (George Street, which leads up to the bridge from the city, was built at the same time);<ref name=official6>''Official Guide to Perth and Its Neighbourhood by the Tramway Car Routes'' – Perth Town Council (1907), p. 6</ref> however, its plaque states the year in which construction began, 1766, as its "built" date. The engineer of its construction was [[John Smeaton]], after whom the bridge is colloquially named.

Funded by [[Thomas Hay, 9th Earl of Kinnoull]], the government, and public subscription, the bridge was put to the test three years after its completion. In February 1774, during a quick thaw, broken ice became wedged under the arches and created a natural [[dam]]. Large sections of Perth, including both of its [[Perth, Scotland#North Inch|Inches]], were flooded. The bridge, however, stood firm.<ref name="Bridges of Perth">[http://www.perthcity.co.uk/index.asp?pg=60 "Bridges of Perth" at PerthCity.co.uk] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927063817/http://www.perthcity.co.uk/index.asp?pg=60 |date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> It has survived many subsequent floods, and marks documenting these levels are visible on one of its [[pier (architecture)|pier]]s.<ref>[http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/eh/12.1/macdonald.html HistoryCooperative.org - Neil MacDonald] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080121075301/http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/eh/12.1/macdonald.html |date=21 January 2008 }}</ref>

An increase in traffic resulted in the bridge being widened in 1869 by A.D. Stewart. Its stone [[parapet]]s were removed, and footpaths projected over iron brackets.<ref name="Bridges of Perth"/>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:The imperial gazetteer of Scotland; or, Dictionary of Scottish topography, compiled from the most recent authorities, and forming a complete body of Scottish geography, physical, statistical, and (14595861428).jpg|The bridge as it was before being widened in 1869
File:Plaque on Smeatons bridge.jpg|A plaque on the bridge
File:St. Matthew's Church and Smeaton's Bridge.jpg|Smeaton's Bridge, with [[St Matthew's Church, Perth|St Matthew's Church]], on [[Tay Street]], on the left, looking north from [[Queen's Bridge, Perth|Queen's Bridge]]
File:Perth Bridge from Bridgend.jpg|A view from Bridgend's East Bridge Street to West Bridge Street, which traverses the bridge
File:Flood water levels - geograph.org.uk - 1969143.jpg|Flood water levels of the Tay etched into the bridge's brickwork
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[List of Category A listed buildings in Perth and Kinross]]
*[[List of listed buildings in Perth, Scotland]]
*[[1814 Perth flood]]
*[[1993 Perth flood]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{commonscat-inline}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070927063817/http://www.perthcity.co.uk/index.asp?pg=60 Bridges of Perth at PerthCity.co.uk]
*[http://www.shubs.net/howard/scotland/perth.html#brigoftay Brig of Tay plaque]

{{River Tay}}

[[Category:Bridges in Perth, Scotland]]
[[Category:Category A listed buildings in Perth and Kinross]]
[[Category:Bridges across the River Tay]]
[[Category:Listed buildings in Perth, Scotland]]
[[Category:Listed bridges in Scotland]]
[[Category:Stone bridges in Scotland]]
[[Category:Bridges completed in 1771]]
[[Category:1771 establishments in Scotland]]