Above: The aerial photo was taken in August 1945. It’s looking south so the southern end of Fernilee Reservoir is at the bottom of the frame.
The inset photo of three children dates to the 1960s, shortly before the bridge was removed. The fade below shows where it would be today.
Many thanks to John Bingham for pointing me towards the first aerial photo I’ve seen of the suspension bridge. There are quite a few posts on this website about the bridge, which was erected shortly before Stockport Corporation flooded Fernilee Reservoir in 1937.
It was demolished during the construction of Errwood Reservoir in the mid 1960s, so lasted less than 30 years. But there are many people who still remember crossing the bridge and even climbing it.
Above: Click the ‘Now’ button, or drag the green slider’ to compare the 1945 aerial photo with today’s Google Earth satellite view.
Above: The full image rotated so north is at the top. I’ve marked some other features, including the ruins of two of the many farmhouses that were demolished in the 1930s – Errwood and Bunsal.
The water level in Fernilee was quite low when the photo was taken in August 1945. It would normally have extended to the bottom of the image. There’s another fade on this page that shows this more clearly
I’ve spoken to quite a few people who have fond memories of crossing the bridge. But it wasn’t universally appreciated. Crichton Porteous in his book, Peakland, complained;
Near the head of the reservoir a steel suspension bridge, connecting as it seems no special place to anywhere else, spans the water, offering a good view northward of the wider end of the reservoir. Erected in 1935 at a cost of well over £500, this bridge is scarcely used in the week.
When Stockport Corporation secured powers in 1929 to build two reservoirs (one still to be made sometime, the dam above Goyt’s Bridge), the Act of Parliament stated that any public paths interfered with should be replaced by others, and this bridge takes the place of an old ford across the Goyt.
Above: Members of the popular Goyt Valley Facebook Group often post photos and memories of the valley. Rita recently posted these two (click to enlarge). The one on the left shows her Dad watching her two brothers climbing one of the bridge supports. The other is the first colour photo I’ve seen of the bridge.
