Stopham Bridge

The first documented crossing of the Arun at Stopham was a ferry known as the Eastover Ferry. There is conflicting documentary evidence on the date of construction of the current bridge, but a bridge in some form is known to have stood since at least the early 13th century. The earliest known record of a bridge is from 1347, when responsibility for its upkeep rested with the rapes (medieval administrative divisions of Sussex) of Chichester, Arundel, and Bramber. Patent rolls record a grant of pontage (authority to collect tolls to maintain the bridge) in 1399, though only for two years, suggesting a temporary structure. Thomas Walker Horsfield and James Dallaway—both 19th-century Sussex…

The bridge is at the uppermost navigable and tidal reaches of the Arun, just upstream from its confluence with the River Rother. It stands roughly 10 miles from the sea at Littlehampton as the crow flies and almost 20 miles along the course of the river. The bridge is medieval in origin though the exact date is unknown. Its design differs from neighbouring bridges over the Rother; no contemporary bridges over the Arun survive in their original state. None of the arches are ribbed. The six flanking arches each have a span of 11 ft; the centre arch spans 12 ft. The centre arch is out of proportion to the others, having been raised by five feet (1.5 metres) in 1822. The bridge is 246 ft long…