Fort Augustus, Swing Bridge over Caledonian Canal An oblique view of the swing bridge looking south

Description Fort Augustus, Swing Bridge over Caledonian Canal An oblique view of the swing bridge looking south

Date 29/3/1999

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number D 64041

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 799659

Scope and Content Fort Augustus Swing Bridge, Caledonian Canal, Highland, from north This shows the east side of the swing bridge which was built in 1932 by Sir William Arrol & Company. A white-painted and railed walkway extends from the bridge and the control cabin is the small building with tapering widows in the background. The pier-shaped structure on the left is used as a support for the bridge when it has been moved into an open position to allow large ships passage along the canal. This bridge replaced an earlier swing bridge which had probably become too small for increased vehicle usage in the 1930s. The advantage of this new bridge is that it provides a stronger and wider span across the canal for road traffic. The Caledonian Canal was designed by Thomas Telford (1757-1834) and built between 1803 and 1822 at a cost of £840,000. It was the first example of a transport network funded by the government in Great Britain. The 96.5km-long canal provides a route for boats travelling between the North Sea and Atlantic Ocean as it runs from the Beauly Firth at Clachnaharry, Inverness, to Loch Linnhe at Corpach. Only 35.4km of this length is man-made while the other 61km runs through four lochs: Loch Dochfour, Loch Ness, Loch Oich and Loch Lochy. Unfortunately at 4.2m deep the canal was too small for most sea-going ships which led to it being altered and deepened between 1844 and 1847. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

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