Rectory Junction Viaduct
Rectory Junction Viaduct, Netherfield, Notts.
Also known as Radcliffe Viaduct.
The ironwork for the longest (110 ft) span over the River Trent was produced in 1850 by Clayton and Shuttleworth of Lincoln.
It was built to carry the Nottingham to Grantham railway line across the River Trent. It was originally commissioned by the Ambergate Railway Company to link their line from Grantham with the Midland Railway at Colwick Junction, and thence to Nottingham. The approach section was first made in timber, but was rebuilt in red brick in 1909 by the Great Northern Railway. The bridge’s internal cast iron ribs were encased in concrete by British Rail in 1981 to increase its strength, but the original cast iron ribs on the exterior were left exposed, leaving the appearance of the bridge little changed.[1]