Newhaven's Bridges

Between 1863 and 1866 a cut was made through from just north of what Is now Denton Island to create a ‘canal’ down towards the river mouth.  This was done to speed up the flow of water, which helped to scour the river of sediment and clear the harbour mouth of shingle that accumulated there. This greatly aided shipping entering the harbour and it also helped boats going up stream of Newhaven - boats regularly travelled to and from Piddinghoe and Lewes at this time.  The creation of this cutting also enabled the building of the North Quay upstream of the bridge.

The creation of the cutting meant that a bridge capable of opening to allow sizeable boats through was required.  The first ‘swing’ bridge was made of iron and was in use for over 100 years – from 1866-1974.  The picture below shows it being opened – it took eight men to turn the capstan that opened the bridge.

During the Second World War the port of Newhaven was strategically important. A ‘reserve bridge’ was fabricated and stored nearby ready to be installed if enemy bombing destroyed the bridge.

The final opening of this bridge was on the 7 November 1974, the same day that its replacement, the concrete bridge in use today was first used.  The iron bridge was demolished in early 1976 and a few small parts are preserved in the Newhaven Museum.  Whilst the current bridge is a more functional structure, opened mechanically and capable of carrying the heavy traffic of today it lacks the elegance and decorative details of the iron bridge.  The picture below shows that the structural wrought iron work of the bridge made an attractive feature.

Newhaven Historical Society have kindly provided the information and photographs. To find out more information, please visit Newhaven Historical Society