| A LITTLE HISTORY OF OUR AREA The early 19th century village consisted of a few farmhouses and cottages straggled along the track which passed for a main road. On the river bank were a granary and a windmill and stretching to the east and north were vast, fast flowing expanse of marshes known as Cross Keys Wash, through which the River Nene wound its way to the sea. The whole area composed of sand and silt, continually shifting as the water cut new channels. the track across the marshes between Lincolnshire and Norfolk was passable at low water, but only if the safe path was known, would the traveller reach the safety of the opposite bank. Many wagons and coaches were lost into the quicksand of the marshes. The Wash House (now the Bridge Hotel) marked the start of the safe track and it was possible to hire guides to help the general travellers and also the drovers with their herds of cattle, flocks of sheep or geese safely over the marsh. The opening of Cross Keys Bridge and embankment in 1831 stimulated growth in the village. The East and West Bank lighthouses (although non functioning) were also built at this time to commemorate the opening of the Nene outfall. The earliest development was initiated by William Skelton, a local man who was Steward of the Estate for Guys Hospital which owned most of the land. High Street, Custom House Street, Lime Street,King Street, Queen Street, Princes Street and New Street (now New Road) all began their growth around this time. By the mid 19th century, there was a thriving population of around 1500 people. Wharves and warehouses were built beside the new Nene Outfall. Trading vessels sailed weekly to London, Newcastle and Hull. In fact 105 vessels were registered at the port including a steam tug and shrimp & mussel fishing boats. The first railway reached the village in 1862. The actual operation of the railways caused problems when ships were using the river. With no radio communication between the two, news of the approaching ship depended on visual warning. Getting a train on its way before the bridge needed to be opened for a ship often involved a hurried scramble. When the bridge was swung, the railway signals locked at danger. The present bridge is the third. Rennie & Telford designed the first which was opened in 1831 as part of the Wash Embankment works. It was of timber and cast iron and opened up rather like Tower Bridge in London. The approach road ran immediately in front of The Bridge Hotel. Large crowds met the first stagecoach to cross it on July 4th 1831. The bridge was found to be awkwardly sited and in 1850, its replacement designed by Robert Stephenson, was opened, it's position being approximately halfway between where the original one stood and the present day bridge stands. It was a swing bridge, used only for road traffic until 1864 when the Midland railway acquired powers to use it for rail traffic too. The current bridge was built in 1897 and cost £80,000 to build. It was hoped that the 1850 bridge could be left in position for rail use but the river authorities decided that two bridges so close together constituted a hazard for shipping, and it was removed. THE RAILWAY Sutton Bridge had a busy railway station, seeing passenger traffic until 28th Feb 1959 and freight up until the line closed on 1st May 1965. The station consisted of a large goods yard, brick built goods shed plus a 42ft turntable. The yard dealt with a lot of outward freight traffic including agricultural and horticultural goods plus timber from the docks branch. Inward freight was often coal or farming implements. SUTTON BRIDGE DOCK The Sutton Bridge Dock Act was passed in 1875. This authorised the construction of the dock and other necessary works, including connecting the dock to the existing railway. The wet dock was to be some 475 yards by 140 yards with a lock from the river of 200 feet by 50 feet. The length of the quayside was to be 1250 yards with a long timber jetty on the east side. On the west side was to be a coal jetty, equipped witha hydraulic lift to raise coal trucks to tip their loads into ships waiting beneath. The dock gates weighed 35 tons each and 1.5 million bricks were used in constructing the dock entrance. An area of 13 acres was taken up by the dock itself and 600,000 cubic yards of soil were excavated. The first sod was cut on January 1st 1878 and 100 men, 50 horses and carts, 1 steam dredger and several barges were involved in the work. The work was completed and the first ship to enter the dock (The S.S Garland) did so on 14th May 1881, carrying 1200 tons of cargo destined for Messrs. English of Wisbech. The excitement was spoilt somewhat as the dock entrance hadn't been dredged to a sufficient depth and the ship had to unload some of her cargo before entering the dock. However, towed by the tugs, Pendennis (see centre picture below) and the Isle of Ely, she floated into the dock. In the following week, four other ships used the dock. The official opening was planned for 29th June with great public festivities, however on 9th June part of the ground at the south west corner of the lock sank 10 feet, leaving the concrete facing unsupported. At the same time, a strip of earth at the back of the lock on the north side sank, carrying with it, two steam traction engines which had been used for pumping. They were buried 10 feet deep in the silt. Frantic efforts were made to repair the damage. Trainloads of sand, silt, rubble, clay and limestone were poured into the gaps to no avail. On the following Tuesday 500 feet of concrete facing on the opposite, west side of the dock itself were dislodged because the footings had been scoured away. On Wednesday, many more yards of the concrete cracked and subsided. All 3 ships which had been in the dock had got away safely with some difficulty. The great weight of concrete laid on shifting silt, together with inadequate timber piling would appear to have led to the collapse. Efforts to save the dock were soon seen to be futile and the plan was abandoned. The railway company lost a fortune and Sutton Bridge's growth as a port was halted for over 100 years until the current Port Sutton Bridge was opened in 1987.
INTERESTING PAGES THE LINCOLNSHIRE POTATO RAILWAYS WERE NARROW GAUGE RAILWAYS USED BY FARMERS FOR TRANSPORTATION OF FARMING IMPLEMENTS AND CROPS TO AND FROM THE FIELDS. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ MORE MACKENZIE THORPE WAS A LOCAL POACHER TURNED WILDFOWLER AND LEAD A VERY INTERESTING LIFE. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ MORE | 
