Dunipace Bridge - date stone

Image: © Lairich Rig Taken: 1 Mar 2010

For a view of the bridge as a whole, see Image This inscribed stone is located in the eastern wall of the bridge, facing the interior. Even when lit at a favourable angle, as was the case here, the date itself is hard to read; in particular, the last two digits are very worn, but 1825 is the correct reading. The text of the inscription is as follows: Built by THOMAS GRAY Mason LESMAHAGOW And CHRISTOPHER CAIRNS Road Contractor STIRLING 1825 The booklet "Denny and Dunipace – views from the past", by Margaret Ferguson (1987), provides further details. It mentions that the bridge was "designed by James Walker, Surveyor for the Road Trustees of the Eastern District of Stirlingshire", and that it was erected in 1825 (the booklet was my source for the last two digits of the inscription). It mentions the ceremony that accompanied its opening, and the fact that a "glass bottle containing all the coins of the realm" (and various other items) was placed into a compartment within the keystone; it notes, also, that this stone was soon broken into, and its contents stolen.

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