View from the West of the Queensferry erection (seen from the rescue boat). Digital image of B 3440.

Description View from the West of the Queensferry erection (seen from the rescue boat). Digital image of B 3440.

Date 9/9/1988

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

Catalogue Number SC 728353

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of B 3440

Scope and Content Queensferry cantilever from west, Forth Bridge, Edinburgh and Fife The Forth Bridge was built between 1883 and 1890 to designs by engineers Sir John Fowler (1817-98) and Sir Benjamin Baker (1840-1907) with Sir William Arrol (1839-1913) and Joseph Phillips as contractors. This massive steel railway viaduct features three double cantilevers connected by girders with a total span of 2.5 km. This shows the huge steel tubes which form the central section of the double cantilevers which support the internal viaduct. These rest on circular stone piers which are sunk deep into the riverbed. Walkways between the girders allow access for maintenance and painting to the very highest areas of the bridge, which is over 110m high. The piers were constructed using caissons, metal drums which are sunk down onto the riverbed like upturned cups before having their lower section filled with compressed air to keep out water. Workers were then admitted through airlocks to excavate deep into the river bed. Once the caissons had reached the required depth they were filled with concrete and the stone piers built up. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/728353

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap