Celebrations for anniversary of oldest bridge in Highlands

Weekend of fun events marks 300 years of the Bridge of Carr

The 300th anniversary of the oldest surviving bridge in the Highlands was celebrated at the weekend.

The Bridge of Carr in Carrbridge was built between around May and November 1717.

Locals marked the occasion with a weekend of celebrations and entertainment, starting with an opening ceremony at the bridge on Friday night when a plaque was unveiled and a piper performed. The bridge was toasted with a special dram to mark the occasion.

There was live music and a beer festival plus a village and bridge history exhibition at local hotels throughout the weekend.

A “Monstrous Gathering” took place at Carrbridge Primary School on Saturday, followed by a family ceilidh in the village hall.

Yesterday there was a church celebration and later a Sunday carvery.

Andrew Kirk, chairman of Carrbridge Community Council, said: “It was a great success, a fantastic happy community celebration.

“It was very wet on Saturday but we had a marquee and between the marquee and the school we managed to do the afternoon fun event, which was great. Various sums of money were raised for the toddlers group, the play park improvement and the village hall. The family ceilidh was sold out.

“We all enjoyed investigating the history and finding out interesting facts about the bridge.”

At the beginning of the 18th century there was no point at which the River Dulnain could be crossed when it was in spate. Burials at the Church of Duthil were often delayed as a result.

Brigadier General Alexander Grant of Grant, the clan chief, commissioned John Niccelsone, a mason from Ballindalloch, to build a bridge at Lynne of Dalrachney.

The bridge was paid for out of stipends of the parish of Duthil.

The area had been hit hard by famine during the 1690s, which made it difficult for people to travel.

During this time the River Dulnain was also experiencing an unusual frequency of spates, which delayed many funerals on the south side of the river.

It is thought that this is the reason the bridge is often referred to locally as the Coffin Bridge.

It has survived many floods. Perhaps the most infamous of these was the Muckle Spate of 1829, when its parapets were washed away.

IN THE SPIRIT: Locals marked the 300th anniversary by wearing period dress

A plaque to mark the anniversary was unveiled