Brunel's Other Bridge Bristol Swivel Bridge 2015

Brunel Swivel Bridge Project Photos July 2015

This month we did a general tidy up, remove vegetation, etc; started excavating the footings around the tail-wheel track and back-filled on completion; continued to shape the new timber 'stop' to replace the rotten one under the Plimsoll Bridge and helped Bob with the plates surveys.

Mike Chapman our archaeologist came along to guide us
and do a watching brief. He also looked at our finds.

Channels and layers discovered

Brick laid with cement/coal dust mortar

Saturday 18th July

Railtrack and wooden stop. More sun, teamwork and just the right number of volunteers. What more could anyone ask for?

Bob our stuctural engineer tells the two Mikes where to start digging	Yasin, a graduate engineer joins in
Mike Chapman the archaeologist tells Mike T, Mike B, Geoff and John (another new graduate engineer) what is expected of a watching brief	Mike finds a new surface
Mike uses a variety of tools to extend the hole	Mike Chapman uses his own more delicate tools to investigate the hole
A channel was found covered by a pennant flagstone	We found bits of pottery, shells, some clay pipes- all victorian waste as well as very malleable clay. Demonstration that this is made up land.
Shona, an undergraduate Civil engineer from Bath University helps Martyn survey the bridge	Yasin helps Bob survey the bridge too
Bobs diagrams to note the corrosion	Both students and graduates have found working on the bridge with professional engineers gives them valuable practical experience about working on historic structures
Bob had a very apt tee-shirt	Geoff removed an old patch so that new repairs can be performed in the future.
The plate surrounded by transparent metal	Graham came all the way from Birmingham to continue work on making a new bridge stop
He brought his tools with him	Chipping away
As a break we could watch the Pyronaut	Lots of interest from passers by

Sunday 19th July

More checking rail foundations and a bit more surveying by Bob and Martyn

Mike found yet another channel	Checking how solid the foundations were by the track itself. Geoff started off by drilling
Mike used the long chisel	Mike B used the lump hammer
Bob had a go	Maggie had a go.
We all had a rest after that facilitated by the shape of the bridge	Julian interviewed Bob
Mike swept up the area to aid surveying and photography of the area	The track foundations are very solid. Note the bolts holding down the rail
We then filled in the hole	Mike got on with digging out the pit where the other stop was
Another mound of dirt	Big lump of tarmac lifted out and pit covered over