Maps
[ As to the name "Black Bridge" I notice that the old name for the big wood to the east of
Nuneham Park used to be "Black Wood". The railway goes nowhere near it, but maybe the wood
for the first bridge came from there? I recently met a Radley rowing man who knew
the bridge under this name. ]
The bridge has, it seems, a very similar history to
Appleford Railway Bridge
(which is only a mile or so down the line, though much further by water).
As with Appleford Bridge I can so far find no picture of the 1844 original.
1844: Isambard Kingdom Brunel built a timber bridge to carry the
Oxford – Didcot Railway Line.
1856: An iron bridge built.
1882:Black Bridge, Nuneham Courtenay, Henry Taunt -
Black Bridge, Nuneham Courtenay, Henry Taunt, 1882
© Oxfordshire County Council Photographic Archive; HT3857
1873: from Sherwood's 'Oxford Rowing' -
1873. Coxswainless Fours were established. They were
arranged to be rowed from the lasher to the island at
Nuneham, as level races, but the steering was so atrocious
that this latter idea was soon abandoned.
We can well remember
the sorry plight of one of the crews as we saw
them one day, dripping wet, and shivering in the cold wind
on one of the piers in the middle of the river under Nuneham
Railway Bridge; too cold to swim, and with no friendly boat
in sight to take them off, and their own boat a wreck through
running into the bridge;
and the steering in the other boats
was nearly as bad, only they had the good fortune always
to run into the bank on one side or the other.
1885: The Royal River -
It is best to see Nuneham Reach from the railway bridge. From any other point it is necessary to see the bridge itself.
1890: And here is the view taken by Frith -
View upstream from Black Railway Bridge, 1890
1897: Second Nuneham Railway Bridge, James Dredge -
Second Nuneham Railway Bridge, James Dredge, 1897
© Oxfordshire County Council Photographic Archive; D230160a
1929: Current Nuneham Railway Bridge built in steel.
1943: Start of the second unofficial Wartime Boat Race -
The Cambridge crew was a cosmopolitan one by the standards of those times with a Dane
at bow and a Turk at 4. Oxford on the other hand was nationally more traditional,
but had no less than 4 medical students in the crew. As on the previous occasion (1940)
training was restricted to three afternoons per week for both crews.
The banks of the rather narrow 1¼ mile course (from Black Bridge to the island by Radley Boathouse)
were thronged with spectators all of whom had had to reach it by either bicycle or on foot.
The newspaper reports at the time speak about a crowd of between 7,000 and 10,000.
Oxford won the toss and chose the Oxfordshire bank. They set off at 40 compared to the Cambridge 37
and were in the lead almost immediately, reported as a length up in less than half a minute.
Despite being left at the start, Cambridge clearly did not give up and gave a spirited response
for the judge’s verdict at the finish was a win for Oxford by two-thirds of a length.
Nuneham Railway Bridge in 2002.
[ Aren't I nicely tucked up in the reeds! I was blown there! (And then decided I should take a
photo to justify myself.) I was going to Abingdon on a windy day and
somebody had taken Abingdon and made off with it.
Whole sections of river had been randomly inserted.
That two miles from Lock Wood Island to Abingdon stretched quite endlessly … ]
1891: The Stream of Pleasure, Joseph & Elizabeth Robins Pennell -
All the afternoon we drifted with the stream, or lay for hours among the reeds
by the banks, watching the boats. In the stillness we could hear the splashing of oars,
the grinding of rowlocks long before they came in sight, far voices,
and even the sharpening of a scythe on shore.
And then a shrill whistle and a train rushing across the meadow-land would
remind us that this great quiet of the Thames is within easy reach of London.
2005: Picture, Doug Myers –
Nuneham Railway Bridge, Doug Myers © 2005
(Upstream to Nuneham)
Estuary
PLA
QEII Br
Barrier
Tower Br
Custom Ho
London Br
; Frost Fairs
Cannon St Rb
The Great Stink
Southwark Br
Millenium Br
Blackfriars Rb
Blackfriars Br
Waterloo Br
Charing Cross Rb
Westminster Br
Lambeth Br
Vauxhall Br
Victoria Rb
Chelsea Br
Albert Br
Battersea Br
Battersea Rb
Wandsworth Br
Fulham Rb
Putney Br
Hammersmith Br
Barnes Rb
Chiswick Br
Kew Rb
Kew Br
RICHMOND
Twickenham Br
Richmond Rb
Richmond Br
TEDDINGTON
Kingston Rb
Kingston Br
Ditton Slip
Hampton Br
MOLESEY
SUNBURY
Walton Br
Desborough Cut
SHEPPERTON
Chertsey Br
CHERTSEY
M3 Br
Laleham Slip
PENTON HOOK
Staines Rb
Staines Br
Runnymede Br
BELL WEIR
Magna Carta Is
OLD WINDSOR
Albert Br
Datchet
Victoria Br
Black Potts Rb
ROMNEY
Eton
Windsor Br
Windsor Rb
Windsor Slip
Elizabeth Br
BOVENEY
Dorney Lake
York Cut
Summerleaze Fb
MonkeyIsland
New Thames Br
BRAY
Bray Slip
Maidenhead Rb
Maidenhead Br
Below Boulters
BOULTERS
Cliveden
Hedsor
COOKHAM
Cookham Slip
Cookham Br
BourneEnd RFb
Quarry Woods
A404 Br
MARLOW
Marlow Br
Bisham
TEMPLE
HURLEY
Medmenham
Culham Ct
Aston Slip
HAMBLEDEN
Temple Is
Fawley Ct
Remenham
Regatta
Phyllis Ct
Henley Slip
Leander
Red Lion
Henley Br
Angel on Br
Landing
Hobbs Boatyard
Hobbs Slipway
MARSH
Hennerton
Bolney
Wargrave
Shiplake Rb
R.Loddon
SHIPLAKE
Sonning Br
SONNING
Dreadnought
K&A Canal
CAVERSHAM
Reading Br
Caversham Br
Reading Slip
Purley
MAPLEDURHAM
Hardwick Ho
Whitchurch Br
WHITCHURCH
Hartswood Reach
Gatehampton Rb
Goring Gap
Goring Br
GORING
Swan
CLEEVE
Moulsford
Moulsford Rb
Papist Way Slip
Winterbrook Br
Wallingford Br
BENSON
Shillingford Br
R.Thame
DAYS
Burcot
Clifton Hampden
Clifton Church
Clifton H Br
Barley Mow
Long Wittenham
CLIFTON
Appleford Rb
Sutton Courtenay
Sutton Br
CULHAM
Culham Cut Fb
Abingdon Slip
Abingdon
Abingdon Br
ABINGDON
Nuneham Rb
Nuneham
Nuneham Park
Radley Boats
SANDFORD
Rose Island
Kennington Rb
Isis Br
Iffley Mill
IFFLEY
Oxford Rowing
Isis
Donnington Br
Riverside Slip
Boathouses
Punting
Lower Cherwell
Upper Cherwell
Islip
Head of River
Salters Steamers
Folly Br
Bacons Folly
Oxford Fb
Osney Fb
Weir stream
Osney Rb
Bullstake Stream
Osney Marina
OSNEY
Osney Br
Four Rivers
OLD RIVER
CANAL
Medley Weir Site
Medley Fb
Bossoms
Perch
Trout
GODSTOW
Godstow Nunnery
Godstow Br
Thames Br
KINGS
River Evenlode
EYNSHAM
Swinford Br
Oxford Cruisers
PINKHILL
Farmoor
Stanton Harcourt
Bablock Slip
Arks Weir Site
NORTHMOOR
Harts Fb
Rose Revived
Newbridge
Maybush
River Windrush
below Shifford
SHIFFORD
Shifford Fb
Tenfoot Fb
Trout Inn
Tadpole Br
RUSHEY
Old Mans Fb
RADCOT
Radcot Cradle Fb
Swan Inn
Radcot New Br
Radcot Old Br
GRAFTON
Eaton Hastings
Kelmscott
Eaton Fb
BUSCOT
Bloomers Hole Fb
Trout Inn
St Johns Br
ST JOHNS
Halfpenny Br
Marina Slip
LIMIT
Inglesham
Hannington Br
Kempsford
Castle Eaton Br
Marston Meysey
A419 Br
Cricklade
SOURCE?
THAMES HEAD
SEVEN SPRINGS