Unsliven Bridge, Stocksbridge

The Unsliven Bridge at Stocksbridge is a single-span road bridge dating from about 1730, with subsequent widening in 1796. It is constructed of gritstone. The bridge has a rectangular plan with splayed abutments.

The three phases of construction of the segmental arched bridge are clearly visible in the arch soffit. The original section, thought to be from around 1730, is evident in the east (downstream) elevation, built from coursed, quarry-faced gritstone. The arch in this section features tooled haunches, a projecting keystone, and keyed springing blocks. A projecting string course with triple bullnose mouldings supports the parapet wall, which has keyed coping stones and terminates at each end with projecting rectangular piers, topped with cushion cap stones. The parapet piers have less distinct triple bullnose mouldings. The south abutment is splayed while the north abutment is straight and contains a blocked flood arch with quarry-faced voussoirs. The east arch soffit has a projecting crown spine and keystones.

The west (upstream) elevation and the soffits of both western arches are built from coursed, finely tooled gritstone, with squared voussoirs and the absence of a central keystone. A string course supports a parapet wall that is splayed at each end, features butt-jointed coping stones, and terminates at the south end with a slightly projecting rectangular pier with a shallow cushion capstone. A low, rounded stone bollard is located against the base of the parapet wall. The parapet coping is inscribed “JOHN / 1796”.

The north end of the parapet wall was altered in 1805 with the addition of a splayed wing wall rising from a secondary projecting string course onto a secondary quarry-faced stone abutment. Both abutments are largely hidden by walls associated with the Underbank Reservoir overflow channel. The bridge has a tarmacadam road surface.