(Site of) Bridge, Magherascouse Road, Ballygowan, Co. Down, BT23 5R[?S]

The site of a bridge, originally built between 1840 and 1859, is located on the Magherascouse Road, near Ballygowan in County Down. The bridge once carried the Magherascouse Road over a railway cutting that formed part of the Belfast and County Down Railway line, which connected Comber and Downpatrick and opened in March 1859. The railway line closed in 1950, and the cutting has since been largely filled in.

The original bridge was described in a 1974 survey as having an elliptical arch constructed of darkstone basalt rubble, with sandstone coping on the parapets, sandstone voussoirs with margin joints, a cill course to the parapet, and a spring course. A brick intrados (the inner curve of the arch) was also present. The condition was noted as fair but overgrown at that time, with a width of approximately 25 feet over the parapets. Since 1974, the railway cutting has been almost entirely filled, and new houses have been built around the site.

While nothing remains of the bridge on the North side of the site, a slight hollow to the South indicates the former cutting's location. A tall rubble wall runs along the roadside, incorporating a sandstone course about halfway up; this wall may be constructed from material originating from the original bridge, or potentially include original bridge elements. It is likely that the bridge has been largely demolished, although burial remains a possibility. The site possesses industrial archaeological interest.