Mill River Bridge, County Donegal

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Triple-arch bridge carrying road over the Mill River, built c. 1730. Possibly containing earlier fabric. Round-headed arches having roughly squared rubble stone voussoirs; rubble stone construction to arch barrels. Rubble stone construction to piers, abutments, spandrels and parapets; rubble stone coping to parapets. Foundations of bridge built directly on bedrock forming natural breakwaters. Modern repairs in places. Tarmacadam deck with modern footpath to the north-west side. Located to the south-east end of Buncrana. Former corn mill (see 40815032) to north-west, and mill weirs.

This impressive triple-arched road bridge retains its early character and form, and is an appealing feature in the streetscape to the south-east end of Buncrana. It is robustly-constructed in local rubble stone masonry, and its continued survival and use stands as testament to the quality of its original construction. It is built directly onto the bedrock, which demonstrates a sophisticated level of design and engineering, and it is clearly the work of skilled masons. The wide piers between the arches and the unrefined rubble stone construction suggests a relatively early date, perhaps dating to the first half of the eighteenth century. A bridge appears to be marked here on Moll’s map of 1714 although it is difficult to ascertain if this bridge is the structure depicted. It may originally date to the establishment of the new town at Buncrana by Sir John Vaughan c. 1718. This bridge originally formed the principal approach into Buncrana from the south prior to construction of Victoria Bridge. Set in a spectacular location above the fast-flowing Mill River, this noteworthy bridge is an integral element of the built heritage and transport history of the local area, and is a feature of some aesthetic quality in the streetscape to the south-east end of Buncrana.

From the Buildings of Ireland (National Inventory of Architectural Heritage) record 40815033

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Photo credits

National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Maker not stated on source page, jp.pinterest.com
Buncrana GAA (publisher); image bears a small maker watermark that needs confirmation before reuse, buncranagaa.com
Maker not stated on source page, ru.pinterest.com
Maker not stated on source page, www.pinterest.com
David Dixon, Geograph · CC BY-SA 2.0
Maker not stated on source page, lake-of-shadows-hotel.megotel.ru
Golfing in Ireland; photographer not stated, Source publisher
Maker not stated on source page, donegal.ie

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