Cantlop Bridge is a single span cast-iron road bridge over the Cound Brook, north of the villageSmall rural collection of buildings with a church. of Cantlop in the parish of Berrington, Shropshire. It was constructed in 1813 to a design possibly by Thomas Telford, having at least been approved by him.^[1][a]Thomas Telford was the county surveyor of public works for Shropshire from 1787 until his death in 1834.^[2]

The design of the bridge was innovative for the period, and appears to be a scaled-down version of a Thomas Telford bridge at Meole Brace, Shropshire. The bridge is the only surviving Telford-approved cast-iron bridge in Shropshire.^[1] A Grade II* listed buildingStructure of particular architectural and/or historic interest deserving of special protection., it originally carried the turnpike road from Shrewsbury to Acton Burnell.^[3]

The bridge was closed to vehicles in the 1970s, when a new road bridge was built immediately to the west. Still open to pedestrians, it is now in the care of English Heritage.^[3]

Design

The bridge is constructed using a light-weight design of cast-iron lattice ribs to support the road deck in a single span. The cast-iron ribs are supported by stone abutments, which have chamfered ashlarMasonry of squared and finely cut or worked stone, commonly used for the facing of a building. quoinsAny external angle or corner of a structure.. The surface of the roadway is formed of cast-iron deck plates, tarmacked and now gravelled over.^[3]