(photo D. McClure,30th March 1996)
© Text and transcription, Rob Close 2001.
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Stinchar Bridge, Colmonell
(photo D. McClure,30th March 1996)
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In April 1867, the County Road Trustees agreed to grant £1560 to the Girvan District Road Trustees, to enable them to rebuild and extend the bridge over the River Stinchar on the road which runs south-eastwards from Colmonell towards Bardrochat and Heronsford. This was based on an estimated cost of £1800 for the work.1 The bridge was designed by Hugh and Bryce McCall, of Daltippan, Girvan, Surveyors to the Girvan Trustees, and an advertisement for contractors was placed in the Ayr Advertiser of 23rd May 1867. The main contract was placed with Andrew Murray, mason, probably in Girvan. Murray kept an account of the moneys he expended in fulfilment of this contract, and this is transcribed below.2
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|
£ |
s |
d |
|
|
October 1867 |
Mens wages for hewing |
10 |
4 |
0 |
|
Nov 2 |
Mens wages for hewing |
10 |
16 |
7 |
|
Travelling |
2 |
|||
|
Nov 11 |
Wages for hewing |
6 |
||
|
Nov 21 |
Wages for John |
1 |
||
|
Nov 23 |
11 trucks of stones from Thornhill 3 |
18 |
6 |
8 |
|
Discharging from trucks |
5 |
6 |
||
|
Nov 27 |
Paid for derrick crane |
20 |
||
|
Nov 27 |
Carriage of -do- from Shaws |
5 |
||
|
Nov 27 |
2 pair shears |
8 |
6 |
|
|
Nov 28 |
Wages for hewing |
3 |
||
|
Nov 27 |
Archibald Murray. To account of freestone |
3 |
||
|
Decr 4 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
8 |
19 |
4 |
|
Decr 4 |
Discharging from trucks |
5 |
||
|
Decr 4 |
2 blocks and pinch bar, 1/6 each |
4 |
6 |
|
|
Decr 5 |
30 fathoms of new rope |
|||
|
Decr 5 |
1 new flake for gate |
2 |
6 |
|
|
Decr 6 |
John Murray |
1 |
||
|
Decr 7 |
Padlock for crane |
6 |
||
|
Decr 14 |
Carriage of freestone from quarry |
4 |
5 |
7 |
|
Decr 14 |
Hewers’ wages at quarry |
5 |
||
|
Decr 17 |
Jib for crane 15s; making -do- 9s |
1 |
4 |
|
|
Decr 17 |
Setting crane, &c |
1 |
||
|
Decr 28 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
16 |
16 |
4 |
|
Decr 28 |
Discharge from wagons |
15 |
||
|
Decr 21 |
Hewers’ pay |
2 |
||
|
Decr 30 |
Carting 90 tons 12¾ hundredweight of freestones from quarry to Colmonell per J Brown @ 5/6 |
24 |
18 |
6 |
|
Decr 31 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
9 |
9 |
8 |
|
Decr 31 |
Discharging from waggons |
6 |
||
|
1868 January 4 |
Cartage 67 tons of stone - 15½ carts - to Colmonell @ 5/6 |
18 |
11 |
3 |
|
January 6 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
6 |
3 |
2 |
|
January 6 |
Discharging from waggons |
4 |
||
|
January 18 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
9 |
3 |
11 |
|
January 18 |
Weighing of carts at station |
15 |
||
|
January 18 |
Cartage 82 tons 11¾ of stones to Colmonell @ 5/6 |
22 |
14 |
|
|
January 12 |
J Murray |
1 |
||
|
January 20 |
Alex McWhirter - disloading at bridge |
1 |
||
|
January 20 |
Andrew Fulton - disloading at bridge |
1 |
||
|
January 27 |
Hewers’ wages at quarry |
7 |
||
|
Febry 1 |
Carriage of freestones from quarry |
19 |
18 |
11 |
|
Febry 1 |
Cartage of 84 tons 10¼ cwt of stones to bridge @ 5/6 |
23 |
19 |
8 |
|
Feby 8 |
Carriage of freestone from quarry |
12 |
5 |
1 |
|
Feby 6 |
Hewers’ wages at quarry |
6 |
||
|
Feby 11 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
3 |
12 |
9 |
|
Feby 14 |
Hewers’ wages at quarry |
7 |
||
|
Feby 15 |
Hewers at Colmonell |
5 |
14 |
|
|
Feby 15 |
Carting 64 tons 0½ cwt freestone to Colmonell @ 5/6 |
17 |
12 |
1½ |
|
Feby 15 |
Carting sand 10 days @ 6/- |
3 |
||
|
Feby 15 |
To account of carting lime, Charles Melville |
2 |
||
|
Feby 22 |
2 paddock barrows |
1 |
6 |
|
|
Feby 22 |
David Drynan at sand |
10 |
||
|
Feby 22 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
9 |
14 |
7 |
|
Feby 27 |
Carriage of stones from quarry |
6 |
1 |
6 |
|
Feby 27 |
2 burrows |
1 |
2 |
|
|
Feby 27 |
1 pick |
2 |
6 |
|
|
Feby 27 |
2 pieces of rope |
5 |
6 |
|
|
Feby 27 |
1 mast for foot bridge |
3 |
0 |
0 |
|
Feby 27 |
45 old sleepers |
1 |
||
|
Feby 27 |
1 pick |
1 |
6 |
|
|
Feby 27 |
1 scabbler pick |
2 |
||
|
Feby 27 |
7 wedges |
1 |
||
|
March 3 |
Charles Melville to carting lime |
3 |
10 |
|
|
March 9 |
Charles Melville to carting lime |
5 |
||
|
March 7 |
Carriage of 48 tons 15¾ to Colmonell @ 5/6 |
18 |
8 |
6½ |
|
March 7 |
Thornhill to Girvan freestone |
1 |
12 |
1 |
|
March 7 |
Granite from Dalbeattie @ 7/5 per ton |
2 |
11 |
11 |
|
March 7 |
22 stones at Dalbeattie 2/6 per foot |
8 |
16 |
|
|
March 7 |
2 12 feet battens |
8 |
6 |
|
|
March 7 |
Allan Findlay wages |
7 |
||
|
March 7 |
John Crae wages |
2 |
6 |
|
|
March 7 |
Alexander McWhirter wages |
3 |
||
|
March 7 |
Andrew Fulton wages |
3 |
||
|
March 7 |
John McWhirter |
3 |
||
|
March 14 |
Carriage of stones from Girvan |
3 |
5 |
6 |
|
March 14 |
15 days of a cart at sand @ 5/6 |
4 |
2 |
6 |
|
March 14 |
2 blocks |
3 |
||
|
March 14 |
60 lbs rope @ 3d |
15 |
||
|
March 14 |
Adam McGarva wages |
2 |
1 |
9 |
|
March 14 |
James Burges |
2 |
1 |
9 |
|
March 14 |
2 navvy barrows |
1 |
1 |
|
|
March 17 |
James Findlay, 1 cart stones |
5 |
6 |
|
|
March 17 |
John Kerr to stone breaking |
2 |
||
|
March 17 |
Wages of men pulling down old bridge |
15 |
14 |
9 |
|
March 26 |
Charles Melville to carting 280 bolls lime at 7d per boll. Final settlement |
2 |
8 |
4 |
|
Apr 4 |
John Kerr to stone breaking |
1 |
10 |
|
|
Apr 11 |
Paid men’s wages at bridge |
25 |
5 |
2 |
|
Apr 16 |
Paid freight of timber from Stranraer |
6 |
||
|
Apr 25 |
John Kerr to stone breaking |
1 |
10 |
|
|
Apr 25 |
Paid men’s wages at bridge foundations |
24 |
11 |
6 |
|
May 2 |
James Brown |
3 |
6 |
|
|
Apr 30 |
David McWhirter for carriage of wood from Ballantrae |
4 |
2 |
|
|
May 1 |
3 stone of Portland cement @ 1/8 |
5 |
||
|
May 9 |
John Kerr to stone breaking |
1 |
17 |
|
|
May 9 |
Carriage of two barrels of cement |
3 |
||
|
May 9 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
28 |
16 |
3 |
|
May 9 |
Stones from quarry carriage |
1 |
5 |
|
|
May 23 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
26 |
15 |
9½ |
|
May 23 |
John Kerr to stone breaking |
1 |
8 |
6 |
|
May 23 |
Expenses to James McWhirter and Mrs Shaw |
2 |
||
|
June 6 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
32 |
10 |
5 |
|
June 20 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
24 |
0 |
1 |
|
June 20 |
Thomas Chalmers to account |
6 |
||
|
June 20 |
Carriage of engine from Jameston |
3 |
||
|
June 20 |
1 cart coals for -do- |
8 |
8 |
|
|
June 20 |
Carriage of pump from Ayr |
4 |
6 |
|
|
June 20 |
Dr Ferguson, Ballantrae |
2 |
||
|
June 20 |
1 cwt stone from Girvan |
6 |
||
|
July 4 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
38 |
5 |
9 |
|
July 4 |
Paid James Adair for timber |
101 |
5 |
|
|
July 4 |
A Murray & Sons for stone |
40 |
||
|
July 4 |
Carriage of stones from Thornhill |
2 |
1 |
2 |
|
July 18 |
Carriage of stones from Thornhill |
2 |
5 |
2 |
|
July 18 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
43 |
0 |
9 |
|
August 1 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
45 |
19 |
1 |
|
August 15 |
Carriage of stone from Thornhill |
1 |
17 |
1 |
|
August 15 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
22 |
5 |
6 |
|
August 29 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
15 |
9 |
|
|
Septr 12 |
Men’s wages at bridge |
15 |
||
|
Septr 12 |
Carriage of stones from Thornhill |
2 |
8 |
1 |
|
Amount of contract |
1568 |
|||
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397 yards extra banking at bridge at 8d per yd |
13 |
4 |
8 |
|
|
24 yards of metal @ 5s |
6 |
|||
|
19 |
4 |
8 |
There are a few additional entries at the back of the notebook:
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1868 March 7 |
Mast for bridge at Girvan |
3 |
||
|
March 7 |
Loading & carting |
16 |
||
|
March 7 |
Dressing mast |
2 |
||
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March 14 |
1 cart timber from Kinclaer |
3 |
||
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March 21 |
1 cart timber from Kinclaer |
3 |
||
|
March 28 |
2 days of joiner @ 3/- |
6 |
||
|
July 1868 |
Agreement for footbridge at Colmonell per contract |
10 |
10 |
|
|
of timber to become my property |
7 |
10 |
||
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Paid December 26 1868 |
||||
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1868 Jany 16 |
Paid A Murray & Sons to account for stones to bridge at Colmonell |
50 |
||
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Jany 16 |
For crane at Shaws |
3 |
||
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March 5 |
-do- -do- |
50 |
||
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July 3 |
-do- -do- |
40 |
||
|
Jany 15 1868 |
Colmonell Bridge First enstalment |
350 |
8 |
9 |
|
March [ ] |
Second -do- |
328 |
19 |
8 |
|
July 3 |
Third -do- |
379 |
1 |
7 |
|
Decr 29 |
Fourth -do- |
459 |
10 |
|
|
1518 |
- |
- |
The bridge at Colmonell is unexceptional, and its construction seems to have proceeded without undue incident, though the payment of £2 to Dr Ferguson of Ballantrae may represent payment for medical assistance after an accident on the site. The minutiae of the construction would have been replicated at many other new bridges throughout Ayrshire, and beyond, and it is through these details that we learn about mid 19th Century bridge building. We note the assembly of materials from differing places: freestone from Thornhill, granite from Dalbeattie, wood for the centring from Stranraer and Ballantrae, lime brought by Charles Melville. Equipment and tools are gathered together, such as the derrick crane (for which, after a week or so, it is deemed expedient to obtain a padlock), picks, rope and, towards the end of the contract, an engine and pump. Wood (a mast and old sleepers) is obtained, and a temporary bridge put up before the old bridge is pulled down. Initially men are employed in hewing stone, but after the old bridge has been taken down, labour costs are concentrated at the bridge, with a peak of activity in the summer of 1868.
Rob Close
This article was first published in Ayrshire Notes 21, 2001.
© Text and transcription, Rob Close 2001.
Notes
Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald, 10th April 1869, 3e.
Private collection.
Probably Thornhill in Dumfries-shire.