Lower Bann Bridges. Portglenone. Traditional Cache

The Lower Bann River flows from Lough Neagh at Toome to the Atlantic Ocean at Portstewart. The river is 38 miles (51 km) long and is a canalised waterway with five navigational locks at Toome, Portna, Movanagher, Carnroe and Castleroe. It acts as most of the county border between Counties Antrim and Londonderry. This series has 13 caches at or nearby 13 bridges (used and disused) that span part or all of the river. Keep an eye on any geo kids, hounds and yourselves as there is water close by. This series can be completed by boat.

The town is located just to the north of Lough Beg and the principal bridging point for traffic heading to the north west of Ulster. It is one of the various market towns that were developed by the absentee landlords after the plantation of Ulster, to gain better ability to control goings on in their town lands. Its positioning just to the north of the vast lough and as a bridging point for the Bann would have been especially prosperous for the time. The ferry across the Bann at Portglenone was replaced by a timber bridge in 1683. Then a bridge made out the local basalt and consisting of seven arches took its place in 1824. However, following a river widening scheme in 1851, this was replaced by the current triple arch stone structure.

As far as is known the original crossing point of the river was a ford.  This was succeeded by a ferry device.In Richard Dobbs history of Co Antrim in 1683 he describes a wooden bridge which had been constructed that even had seats on it for travellers to enjoy the river.  It was described as one of the best timber bridges in Ireland and had a drawbridge that was taken up by 4 – 6 men every night because of fears that highwaymen and robbers from County Derry known as Tories would use the bridge at night to get into Portglenone!  A seven-arch basalt bridge was constructed in 1824.  This bridge was 246 feet long and 22 feet breadth within the parapets.  It was described in the 1831 Ordnance Survey Memoirs as a "plain structure and in tolerable repair”.  In 1853 the existing bridge was built.  It was designed by Charles Lanyon, who designed Queens University; the stones came from Esler’s Quarry in the Largy.  The bridge was constructed upside down on site, to make sure it was correct, before it was transported to the village.  Each stone was numbered to make sure it was placed correctly.  At the river the shell of the pillars were constructed and the hollow inside filled with Bann Brick.  There was no mortar used, just sand, lime, soda and animals blood.When a survey was carried out in recent years it was found that the bridge had not even moved one half inch in 150 years.There was a swing bridge at the Portglenone side which was removed in the 1970’s.