Bridge over Railway, Whitehouse Park, Newtownabbey, Co Antrim

This is a simply detailed, single-span road bridge over the railway line to the north of Whitehouse Park, to the east of the Shore Road. It carries a private road across the Belfast-Larne railway line. The bridge features random rubble abutments, spandrels, and parapets, along with a single, segmental-headed arch. The arch is constructed with rusticated voussoirs springing from banded imposts, and the parapet has flat masonry coping. The bridge is situated within Whitehouse Park, crossing a deep railway cutting with well-planted embankments. A more modern concrete bridge is located further north.

Historical records indicate that an earlier bridge existed at Whitehouse, described in James Boyle’s 1839 Ordnance Survey Memoirs as having three small, circular arches. This bridge predates the railway and is therefore not the bridge in question. The mid-19th century saw significant expansion of the rail network, including the development of the North Eastern railway line between Belfast and Ballymena, which passed through Whitehouse. This development improved transport and communication links in rural east County Antrim. Stations were built along the line by 1847, and there were concerns about the existing Whiteabbey Station. A new station was authorised in 1863. The bridge itself is likely to have been constructed between 1840 and 1859. It possesses industrial archaeological interest.