Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria - Stanley / Devil's Bridge - RP by Atkinson & Pollitt

• Postcard

   

• Picture / Image:  'A peep of Stanley Bridge from Devil's Bridge, Kirkby Lonsdale'
• Publisher: Atkinson & Pollitt, Kendal
• Postally used: no
• Stamp:  n/a
• Postmark(s): na
• Sent to:  n/a
• Notes / condition: 

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Image may be low res for illustrative purposes - if you need a higher definition image then please contact me and I may be able to send one. No cards have been trimmed (unless stated).

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NOTE: All postcards are sent in brand new stiffened envelopes which I have bought for the task. These are specially made to protect postcards and you may be able to re-use them. In addition there are other costs to sending so the above charge is not just for the stamp!

I will give a full refund if you are not fully satisfied with the postcard.

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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Kirkby Lonsdale (/ˈkɜːrbi ˈlɒnzdeɪl/) is a small town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, on the River Lune. Historically in Westmorland, it is situated 13 miles (21 km) south east of Kendal along the A65. The parish had a population of 1,771, recorded in the 2001 census,^[1] increasing to 1,843 at the 2011 Census (including Middleton, Cumbria).^[2]

Notable buildings include St Mary's Church, a Norman structure with fine carved columns. The view of the River Lune from the churchyard is known as Ruskin's View; it was praised by John Ruskin as "One of the loveliest views in England" and painted by J.M.W. Turner.

The town is noted for the Devil's Bridge (54.199°N 2.590°W) which at one time carried the Skipton to Kendal road over the River Lune. It dates from around 1370 and is constructed of fine gritstone ashlar. It has three spans, the western two measuring 54.75 feet (16.69 m) each and the eastern one 29 feet (8.8 m) and measures 45 feet (14 m) from river to parapet. The piers are hexagonal, measuring 60 feet (18 m) around and extend upwards to provide pedestrian refuges. At the eastern end is a sundial in the form of a square block on an octagonal column.^[5]

The bridge was probably built by the monks of St Mary's Abbey, York. In common with many bridges of the same name, legend holds that the Devil appeared to an old woman, promising to build a bridge in exchange for the first soul to cross over it. When the bridge was finished, the woman threw bread over the bridge and her dog chased after it, thereby outwitting the Devil. Several large stones in the surrounding area, including the Great Stone of Fourstones, are ascribed to the Devil's purse-strings bursting open as he ferried masonry to build it.

It was repaired in 1705, and re pointed in 1829 using Roman style cement. The eastern arch was repaired in around 1869. The roadway on the bridge is only 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, insufficient for modern traffic, and with the numbers of vehicles increasing the bridge was closed to vehicular traffic in 1932.^[6]

Traffic now crosses the river by the Stanley Bridge, 490 feet (150 m) to south, which was built in the 1930s. It is a grade I listed structure and a Scheduled Ancient Monument.^[5] The section of river underneath Devil's Bridge is popular with scuba divers because of the relatively easy access and egress, deep rock pools (about 16 feet during a low swell) and good visibility. The bridge is also popular for illegal "tombstoning" (bridge diving), and at least one death has been recorded.^[7]