Monument record MDR22808 - Jack O'Darley's Bridge, Alfreton Road, Little Eaton

This bridge was originally built as part of the Alfreton and Derby turnpike, which opened in 1807. It carried the turnpike road over the Bottle Brook in Little Eaton, and the Little Eaton Gangway [see SMR 22311]. The bridge had fallen in to serious disrepair in 1821, being described as 'insufficient for the traffic it carries', and was presumably later extensively repaired or rebuilt by the Derby Canal Company, who had acquired ownership of the bridge. The bridge is aligned east-west, and is built of coursed, squared sandstone. It incorporated three semi-circular arched openings, the two to the west spanning the Bottle Brook and the third to the east passing over the Little Eaton Gangway. It has coursed masonry parapets and flat ashlar copings. The bridge was assessed by Historic England for potential listing in 2017, but it was decided that although it was clearly of local significance because of its age and proximity to the route of the Little Eaton Gangway, it lacks the degree of special interest in a national context to merit designation. (1)