South Queensferry, 4 Newhalls Road, The Briggers Memorial
Commemorative Monument (Period Unassigned)
Site Name South Queensferry, 4 Newhalls Road, The Briggers Memorial
Classification Commemorative Monument (Period Unassigned)
Alternative Name(s) Edinburgh Road; Monument To The Men And Boys Who Were Killed In The Construction Of The Forth Rail Bridge
Canmore ID 302343
Site Number NT17NW 307
NGR NT 13579 78312
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/302343
- Council Edinburgh, City Of
- Parish Dalmeny
- Former Region Lothian
- Former District City Of Edinburgh
- Former County West Lothian
Project (1997)
The Public Monuments and Sculpture Association (http://www.pmsa.org.uk/) set up a National Recording Project in 1997 with the aim of making a survey of public monuments and sculpture in Britain ranging from medieval monuments to the most contemporary works. Information from the Edinburgh project was added to the RCAHMS database in October 2010 and again in 2012.
The PMSA (Public Monuments and Sculpture Association) Edinburgh Sculpture Project has been supported by Eastern Photocolour, Edinburgh College of Art, the Edinburgh World Heritage Trust, Historic Scotland, the Hope Scott Trust, The Old Edinburgh Club, the Pilgrim Trust, the RCAHMS, and the Scottish Archive Network.
Field Visit (10 October 2007)
A model section of the Forth Rail Bridge sits on top of a pier-lke pedestal of rough sandstone blocks (emulating the piers supporting the ends of the Forth Rail Bridge).
The original proposed site for the memorial was in the grounds of the nearby Hawes Inn, which were used as a field hospital for injured men during the construction of the Forth Rail Bridge. However the present site in front of The Rail Bridge Café is more prominent.
A list of the names of those who were killed during the bridge's construction is on display in The Rail Bridge Café.
Work began on the Forth Rail Bridge in 1883, and the bridge opened in 1890. At its peak 4600 men worked on it, of whom an estimated 57 to more than 70 died. The true number of dead has still to be established.
Inscriptions : On slate plaque on front of pedestal (incised letters): IN / REMEMBRANCE / OF THE THOUSANDS / OF MEN AND BOYS / WHO WORKED ON THE / FORTH / RAIL BRIDGE / AND THOSE WHO DIED / DURING ITS CONSTRUCTION
On slate plaque on base (incised letters): DESIGNED AND CREATED BY / HAMISH GILCHRIST / STONEWORK BY EDINBURGH'S TELFORD COLLEGE / 2007
Signatures : None Visible
Design period : 2007
Year of unveiling : 2007
Unveiling details : Unveiled by Alex Salmond, First Minister, 3 July 2007
Information from Public Monuments and Sculpture Association (PMSA Work Ref : EDIN1545)
