Publication Account
Date 1987
Event ID 1016828
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1016828
This bridge is one of Thomas Telford's outstanding monuments. Telford was an engineer of genius and one of the first to undertake road building on a massive scale. In 1803 he was appointed surveyor and engineer to the newly-created Commission for Highland Roads and Bridges. He held this post for eighteen years and during that time was responsible for 1,470km of new road and over a thousand bridges. His roads set new standards in surfacing and the bridges varied in scale from mere culverts to some very large spans of iron or masonry.
Dunkeld Bridge is 208m long and 8m wide and was built in 1809 as a toll-bridge. The toll-house at the south end of the bridge brought objections from the townspeople of Dunkeld from its inception. The problem became even more acute after the opening of the Dunkeld and Perth Railway in 1856 as the station was on the south side of the river and the toll had to be added to the cost of rail travel. In 1868 there were 'toll riots' in Dunkeld and a detachment of Royal Highlanders were sent to keep the peace. On several occasions the toll-gates were removed and thrown into the river. The bridge was eventually taken over by the County Council in 1879. The toll-house still survives on the eastern side of the south abutment The town lock-up occupied the chamber within the north abutment.
Telford employed a very distinctive toll-gate constructed of wrought-iron straps forming a double sunburst pattern, the straps radiating like the rays of the sun from two quadrants, one in each of the two hinged corners of the gate. A gate of this design can be seen at Cortachy Castle (NO 394592), but it is not known whether it is an original Telford gate or a later copy.
Dunkeld is now by-passed by the A 9 trunk road and the reduction in traffic within the town presents the opportunity to stop and examine this fine monument Dunkeld Cathedral (NO 024425) and the NTS restoration of the High Street and Cathedral Close are also worthy subjects.
Information from ‘Exploring Scotland’s Heritage: Fife and Tayside’, (1987).