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River Wansbeck

River in Northumberland, England

Summary

River in Northumberland, England

Field	Value
name	River Wansbeck
name_etymology
image	River Wansbeck, Geograph.jpg
image_caption	The River Wansbeck near Low Angerton
pushpin_map	United Kingdom Northumberland
pushpin_map_caption	Location of mouth within Northumberland
<!---------------------- LOCATION -->	subdivision_type1	Country
subdivision_name1	United Kingdom
subdivision_type3	County
subdivision_name3	Northumberland
subdivision_name5
length	50 km
discharge1_max
source1_location	West of Sweethope Loughs
source1_coordinates
source1_elevation	295 m
mouth_location	North Sea
mouth_coordinates
tributaries_right	River Font, Hart Burn

The River Wansbeck runs through the county of Northumberland, England. It rises above Sweethope Lough on the edge of Fourlaws Forest in the area known locally as The Wanneys (Great Wanney Crag, Little Wanney Crag; thus the "Wanneys Beck"); runs through the town of Ashington before discharging into the North Sea at Sandy Bay near Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.

The River flows through the village of Kirkwhelpington, Hartburn, where the tributary Hart Burn joins, the village of Mitford, where the River Font joins, and the town of Morpeth.

The River Wansbeck is nicknamed the River Wanney. The term 'The Wilds of Wanney' is used by people of Tyneside to refer to the rural areas of Northumberland where the Wansbeck rises.

The River lent its name to the former Wansbeck district which was based in Ashington, and included Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Bedlington and Stakeford.

Castle Island is an ait of the River Wansbeck.

Barrage and navigation

Between 1974 and 75, a £250,000 barrage with a navigation lock was built near the rivermouth and adjacent to the A189 road bridge. In so doing the lower three miles of river became a country park and are recognised as England's most northerly inland (locked) navigation. Very little use of the lock has actually been recorded, although rowing and sailing craft are launched and used in the country park.

Stakeford Bridge is about midway in the navigable part. Sheepwash Bridge is near the upper limit of the park and the navigable water.

From 1985, the new navigation was officially recorded in The Inland Waterways of Great Britain, noting that the navigation authority was then Wansbeck District Council, which means that, since 2009, Northumberland County has held that role.

File:The infant River Wansbeck - geograph.org.uk - 627089.jpg|The infant River Wansbeck as a stream File:Stepping stones Morpeth - geograph.org.uk - 1533870.jpg|Stepping stones at Morpeth File:Wallington Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 1585530.jpg|Wallington Bridge between Kirkharle and Cambo File:Weir at Mitford - geograph.org.uk - 305932.jpg|Weir at Mitford File:Wansbeck River Mouth - geograph.org.uk - 69518.jpg|River Wansbeck meets the North Sea

Road and rail river crossings

North Seaton A189 Bridge, A189 (road, foot)
North Seaton Railway Bridge (rail), used to carry Blyth and Tyne Railway now used for freight
Stakeford Bridge, A196 (road, foot)
Sheepwash Bridge, A1068 road (road, foot)
Bothal Mill Bridge, A196 (road, foot)
Pegswood Railway Viaduct, East Coast Main Line (rail)
Morpeth Telford Bridge, A197 (road, foot)
Lowford Bridge, B6343 (road, foot)
Highford Bridge, B6343 (road, foot)
A1 Bridge (road)
Mitford Bridge, B6343 (road, foot)
Meldon Bridge (road, foot)
Mill House Bridge, B6343 (road, foot)
Low Angerton Bridge (road, foot)
Low Angerton Railway Bridge (disused), Used to carry the Wansbeck Railway
Middleton Bridge, B6343 (road, foot)
Wallington Bridge, B6342 (road, foot)
Kirkwhelpington Bridge (road, foot)
Kirkwhelpington A696 Bridge (road)
Sweethope Loughs Road Bridge (road, foot)

References

"River factfiles : Get to know your rivers".
"The barrage is a subject within this Durham University Doctoral thesis "Remediation Strategies and Water Quality of estuarine impoundments" by Jens Lamping".
"North Seaton Bridge".
"River Wansbeck – Gazetteer – CanalPlanAC".
Council, Northumberland County. "Northumberland County Council - Home".
"Archived copy".
"Stakeford Bridge".
"Sheepwash Bridge".
"Sheepwash Bridge – Gazetteer – CanalPlanAC".
Edwards, L. A.: ''The Inland Waterways of Great Britain'', sixth edition [[John William Norie. Imray Laurie Norie & Wilson]], St Ives, Cambs, 1985 p. 382
"Bridges On The Wansbeck - Introduction".

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

rivers-of-northumberland

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