THE TAY BRIDGE. A late 19th Century manuscript plan depictin...

Hammer

£290

THE TAY BRIDGE. A late 19th Century manuscript plan depicting the first Tay Bridge, Dundee, Scotland, to scale, showing tidal movements and structure, approx size 242 x 47cm, rolled. Plans for a bridge over the Tay to replace the train ferry service emerged in 1854, but the first Tay Bridge did not open until 1878. The bridge was designed by engineer Thomas Bouch, who received a knighthood following the bridge's completion. It was a lightweight lattice design of relatively low cost with a single track. On 28 December 1879, the bridge suddenly collapsed in high winds. The incident is one of the greatest bridge-related engineering disasters to have occurred. An enquiry determined that the bridge was insufficiently engineered to cope with high winds.