Hills Bridge (SPC8 63)

Hills Bridge is a single-span accommodation underbridge built between 1836 and 1840 for the North Midland Railway, designed by George and Robert Stephenson with Frederick Swanwick.

The bridge is constructed from Derbyshire gritstone, featuring both rusticated ashlar and coursed and squared quarry-faced stone, with a red brick soffit. The two faces of the bridge are essentially identical. It has a single, semi-circular arch made of rusticated, V-channelled voussoirs that spring from an impost band, topped with a projecting keystone. The spandrels and abutments are also made of rusticated V-channelled ashlar with tooled detailing. The arch soffit is finished in red brick. Below the soffit and impost bands, the underside walls are slightly raked. The arch is framed by projecting, gently curved wing walls made of coursed and squared quarry-faced stone with tooled ashlar quoins. Above the arch, there is a parapet that consists of one projecting course of tooled ashlar and a deeper course above it. The parapet is topped with 20th-century metal railings.