MHG14243 - Monument - Bonar Bridge
Summary
No summary available.
Type and Period (1)
- COMMEMORATIVE MONUMENT (Post Medieval - 1560 AD to 1900 AD)
Protected Status
- None recorded
Full Description
A memorial column with industrial faces commemorating and describing the earlier bridges over the river at Bonar Bridge. <1>
Photograph, copyright of RCAHMS attached to, previously unscanned, record card. Inscription reads:
"Travellers: Stop and read with gratitude the names of the Parliamentary Comissioners appointed in the year 1803, to direct the making of about 500 miles of roads through the Highlands of Scotland and of numerous bridges, particularly those at beauly, Scuddel, Bonar, Fleet and Helmsdale conecting those roads: viz -
Rt. Hon. Charles Abbot
Rt. Hon. Nicholas Vansitart
Rt. Hon. William Dundas
Sir William Pulteney BAR
Isaac Hawkins Brown ESQ
Charles Grant ESQ
William Smith ESQ
to whom were afterwards added
Archibald Colquhourn ESQ LORD ADVOCATE
Charles Dundas ESQ
Rt. Hon. Nathaniel Fond
This building was begun September 1st 1811 and finished November 1812. <2>
In 2014 ARCH provided a number of courses, field trips and other activities exploring and researching the remains of the 19th century engineer, road and church builder Thomas Telford. A project was undertaken in Kyle of Sutherland, during which many sites were visited and photographed by participants. The monument was researched, visited and photographed during this project. According to Robert Southey (Journal of a Tour in Scotland in 1819), George Dempster, owner of Skibo estate which included much of the land on the north side of the Firth at Bonar Bridge) had the plaque erected. Sutherland County Roads Committee minutes for October 1816 mention that Dempster has ordered the the marble tablet. As a result, it dates sometime between 1816 and 1819 (when Southey wrote his account). Southey, who was a friend of Telford, remarked: 'The inscription is full of errors both as to the Commissioners and the extent of the roads; and to crown all it is fixed against the Toll House instead of the Bridge.' (p. 131). The toll house no longer survives, and seems to have been shortlived. Presumably at some later date the plaque was moved to its present location. <3>
Sources/Archives (3)
- <1> SHG24917 Verbal Communication: Gourlay, R. Comment by Robert Gourlay, Highland Regional Archaeologist.
- <2> SHG24918 Image/Photograph(s): RCAHMS. 1984. Photograph of Bonar bridge, Memorial Plaque on Monument. Black and white. . Print (scanned).
- <3> SHG27906 Dataset/Database File: Kruse, S.. 2015. Telford in the Kyle of Sutherland Project. Archaeology for Communities in the Highlands (ARCH). Yes. Digital. Site 15.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred NH 6099 9152 (4m by 4m) (2 map features) |
|---|---|
| Map sheet | NH69SW |
| Geographical Area | SUTHERLAND |
| Civil Parish | CREICH |
Finds (0)
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Investigations/Events (1)
External Links (1)
- http://www.archhighland.org.uk/telford-in-kyle-of-sutherland.asp (Visit the ARCH Telford in the Kyle of Sutherland Project page)
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