ABSTRACT
The high-level Boyne Viaduct on the Dublin—Belfast railway line at Drogheda was the largest continuous lattice girder when its construction was completed in 1855. The bridge comprised three spans: two side spans of 44 m (144 ft) and a main central span of 81 m (267 ft). The Viaduct is of particular interest as one of the earliest continuous bridges to have been designed in accordance with structural theory. The accuracy of the calculations was verified by experiment during construction and the position of the points of contraflexure were controlled. This paper details the input of James Barton, Sir John Macneill, Bindon Blood Stoney and William Bindon Blood to the design of the Boyne Viaduct. The key primary sources referred to in this paper are James Barton’s, and Doyne and Blood’s papers to the Institution of Civil Engineers of London, Stoney’s notebooks and Downing’s paper to the Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland.
