SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

Well, not really Armley, sort of kirkstall, Burley border lands.Down at Thackray Medical Museum they have a wall covered in an enlarged map of leeds, the sort of wallpaper we would lust over, appropriately near the toilets, which are not underground. Not sure when it dates from but Marsh Lane Station, with tunnel and Middleton Colliery Railway are the only ones in town.The bridge in question was to the west or Redcote lane's 'Iron Bridge'. Redcote Lane is marked as a 'private road". It conected with Kirkstall Road by a lane in a direct straight line from the railway arch, landing on Kirkstall Road just to the east of Burley Mills. For those who know redcote lane it jinks to the right as you leave the railway arch and heads toward s the iron bridge, later named Gotts bridge and a toll bridge. For years a path carried straight on and connected with the pedestrian suspension bridge to Burley Mills which lasted til the 50s (I think) this footbridge was a contemporary of the missing bridge.The missing bridge had gone by 1854. Who owned it? Was it lost to storm, neglect or to deliberately make vehicles cross the toll bridge?The abutment is still there and what I always though to be an island may be the remains of a pillar.Anybody know anything?http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=sz16vz ... ORM=LMLTCC    

Hi Cardiarms.I see the link IS working now. Edited post lol     

If these things didn't cost so much I'd batter them.

It is marked off on the 1851 map. But very few clues to what happened to it really.

There's some info about the pedestrian suspension bridge in this link (scroll down to No. 10). From the info on this site, it sounds as if the original bridge constructed in the mid-19th century was the same one as the one which remained until 1954. http://kvp.org.uk/projects.htmLooking at an old map, the "island" on the Bing Map is a spit of land in the river, not an abutment.

No they are separate, Gotts footbridge crossed the Aire at 90 degrees to the missing bridge, you can see the course of the path from Burley Mills to the waters edge on google and the bridge abutment behind the car dealers. The missing bridge connected with kirkstall Road. I've got a photo of the map on my phone and will attempt to updump tomorrow.

http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=sz16yd ... LMLTCCSpin around on the birdseye view and you'll see it.

Yes, I see what you mean now! The abutment is on this 1890s map too. I'll be interested to see the map you photographed at the Thackray Museum and I'll have a search through the British Library 19th century newspapers (I have access online) to see if there's anything about it there.

Google maps - possible stone work or something washed up against the shingle:http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=sa ... 1&t=h&z=19

Tasa wrote: I'll have a search through the British Library 19th century newspapers (I have access online) to see if there's anything about it there. thanks!