Railway Bridge, Grange Road, Cookstown, Co Tyrone

This is a picturesque, well-proportioned, three-arch railway bridge dating to circa 1876. It is located on Grange Road, Cookstown, and forms part of the former Great Northern Railway (GNR) network, a feature of which were triple-arched railway bridges. The bridge is well-preserved and in near original condition, contributing to the group value of the surviving GNR network elements.

The bridge crosses a former railway line from Cookstown to Dungannon and was constructed circa 1876 as part of the Dungannon and Cookstown Railway. It has squared rock-faced sandstone walls with irregular stone capping. The round-headed arches are faced with brick, arranged in three rows of red brick, with a projecting rounded yellow brick row to the outer perimeter. The central arch is supported on two rock-faced cut-stone piers. The roadway is approximately 5 metres wide.

The bridge is set within overgrown banks to the east and a more open grass area to the west, and retains the character of its setting. The Dungannon and Cookstown Railway, later part of the GNR, opened in July 1879 and was closed to both passengers in January 1956 and completely in January 1965. The bridge is similar in design to Kidd’s Bridge. It is of industrial archaeological interest and demonstrates local historical interest.