Brig o' Doon

The Brig o' Doon, sometimes called the Auld Brig or Old Bridge of Doon is a late medieval bridge in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is a Category A structure.

History

The bridge is thought to have been built in the early fifteenth century. According to John R. Hume, the bridge was built by James Kennedy, who died in 1465, but the first recorded mention is in 1512. The bridge was described as "ruinous" in 1593.

The bridge features on the 2007 series of £5 notes issued by the Bank of Scotland, alongside the statue to Robert Burns that is located in Dumfries.

Design

The bridge is located near Alloway and crosses the River Doon. It is a single arched bridge, with a steeply humped span of 72 feet (22 m) and a rise of 26 feet (7.9 m). It has been repaired many times, most recently in 1978, and many parts of the stonework do not match.

The B7024 public road is carried over the River Doon New Bridge of Doon, a single arch stone bridge built downstream of the old one in 1816 to cope with increasing traffic. The old bridge was sold to the builders of the new bridge as a quarry for material, and money was raised to purchase the old bridge back, but the Trustees of the new bridge decided to quarry somewhere else.