The Collapse of the Railway Bridge over the Firth of Tay (Scotland) – Errors and Limits of Technical Design Possibilities and Social Assessment from 1880 onwards

i FernUniversität in Hagen Hausarbeit im Studiengang M.A. Geschichte Europas – Epochen, Umbrüche, Verflechtungen Master-Studies in European History – Epochs, Turning points, Entanglements Module III – Turning points and starting points LE 3: Geschichte der Europäischen Moderne – Modern European History Topic: The Collapse of the Railway Bridge over the Firth of Tay (Scotland) – Errors and Limits of Technical Design Possibilities and Social Assessment from 1880 onwards A Contribution to the History of Technology and the History of European Modernism Author: Dr. Carsten Weerth ORCID: 0000-0003-3702-8456 E-Mail: [email protected] Lehrgebiet: Geschichte der Europäischen Moderne Lecturer: Dr. Arndt Neumann Note: With this paper, the fourth of seven modules in the consecutive Master of Art's program in European History was passed. This automated and guided translation into an English version has been created by help of Google Translator by the author for Scotland and the British Public and upload on https://www.taybridgedisaster.com. Thank you Tom Martin for your web page. ii Content Page List of Figures iii List of Tables iii Keywords iv JEL-Classification iv Abbreviations iv 1. Introduction 1 2. State of research and course of the investigation 3 3. The railway bridge over the Tay Firth (Scotland) 5 3.1 Contstruction of the railway bridge over the Tay Firth (1871-1877) 5 3.2 Accident and collapse of the railway bridge, December 28, 1879 8 4. Social and professional discourse from 1880 onwards 9 4.1 Social discourse 9 4.1.1 Reporting and clean-up 9 4.1.2 Court of Inquiry and its findings 10 4.1.3 Consequences of the court of inquiry reports 13 4.2 Expert Discourse 14 4.3 Literary processing and cultural reverbration (1880) 15 4.4 Faith in progress partially shattered 17 4.5 Reconstruction of the Tay Firth Bridge 18 4.6 Culture of rememberance (Erinnerungskultur) 19 4.7 Subject of investigation to this day 21 4.7.1 Wind theorie 22 4.7.2 Mechanism of the collapse 22 4.7.3 Derailment theorie 22 4.7.4 Fatigue theorie 23 5. Summary and Conclusion 23 Sources 27 References 29 iii Page Appendix 35 Pictures 35 Declaration regarding the pictures and the copyright 42 Texts of the literary adaptations by William McGonagall and Theodor Fontane and other texts (partly anonymous) 43 A-Text 1: The Tay Bridge Disaster by William McGonagall (1880) 43 A-Text 2: Die Brück‘ am Tay von Theodor Fontane (1880) 43 A-Text 3: Children’s song, The Tay Bridge „is broken and […] 46 A-Text 4: Broadside Ballad about the Tay Bridge Disaster 47 A-Text 5: In Memory of the Tay Bridge Disaster [Boardside Ballad] 48 A-Text 6: Fall of the Tay Bridge 51 A-Text 7: Lamentable Lines on the Tay Bridge Disaster 53 A-Text 8: Proverb „I may see you on Tuesday unless the bridge fails“ 54 Versicherung 55 Abstract 56 About the author 56 List of Figures Page Figure 1 The Tay Bridge, Supplement to the “Fife News“ (1877) 36 Figure 2 Reconstructed Tay railroad bridge from the North (1878) 36 Figure 3 Picture of the fallen Tay railway brige 37 Figure 4 Illustration of the fallen railroad bridge over the Tay Forth (Illustrated London News) 37 Figure 5 Illustration of the search underneath the collapsed Tay bridge (The Graphic, London) 38 Figure 6 Caricature „The Spirit of the Storm“ about the fall of the Tay railway bridge 38 Figure 7 Construction of the new railway bridge next to the old one 39 Figure 8 In Memory of the Tay Bridge Disaster, 15.05.1880 40 Figure 9 Contempoary view on the second railway bridge 40 Figure 10 Memorial site at the north side of the Tay-Firth-Bridge 41 Figure 11 Memorial site at the south side of the Tay-Firth-Bridge 41 iv List of Tables Page Table 1 1 Table 2 25 Keywords: Railways, Railway Engineering, Bridge construction, Modern History, Manmade Disasters, Construction History, Bridge Management, History of Technology, Lieux de Memoire. JEL-Classification: H54, L92, O18. Abkürzungsverzeichnis Bft Beaufort BNA British Newspaper Archive CR Caledonian Railway Company DOI Digital Object Identifier GBP Great Britain Pound km Kilometer m Meter NBR North British Railway Company RA Railway Archive s. see SCR Scottish Central Railway Company SNER Scottisch North Eastern Railway Company URL Universal Resource Locator 1 1. Introduction The "long 19th century"1 brought many rapid changes to living conditions in Europe and the world – these included the acceleration of transport routes and communications, which led to greater interconnectedness and a "coming together" of Europe and the world. In the field of transportation, this included, in particular,2 the increased spread of railways, the expansion of the railway network, and thus the national and transnational networking of railway lines. In terms of transport, the 19th century in Europe was the "century of the railway."3 In 1830, the first passenger railway line opened between Liverpool and Manchester.4 At the same time, contemporaries considered the construction of railways "revolutionary."5 The railway was "technically something completely new, for which the world was unprepared."6 Railways were used for freight transport in Great Britain as early as 1825.7 In Germany, the first railway ran between Nuremberg and Fürth in 1835, running on a line just six kilometers long, with a top speed of 30 kilometers per hour and a locomotive imported from Great Britain.8 The railway lines and networks were significantly expanded between 1840 and 1913 (Table 1). Table 1: Overview of the railway lines of European nation states, or of the German Confederation [measured by the total distance in km, rounded]9 Country 1840 1880 1913 Great Britain 2400 29000 38000 Germany 500 34000 63000 France 400 23000 40000 Belgium 330 4000 5000 Austria-Hugnary 100 18000 44000 Total 3730 108000 190000 Own Creation 1 Hobsbawm (2022). 2 Osterhammel (2009). 3 Liedtke (2010), 216. 4 Nonn (2007), 71. 5 Nonn (2007), 71, similar Fisch (2002), 244. 6 Osterhammel (2009), 1018. 7 Nonn (2007), 70 f. 8 Ackermann (2024) and Blume (2010), Deutsches Historisches Museum. 9 Liedtke (2010), 216; adaptied, since Russland, Italien and Schweden have not been included but a total number has been summed up. 2 The expansion of the main railway lines represented the greatest engineering feat in human history.10 Between 1840 and 1860 (the so-called development phase), the length of the rail network in Europe increased twelvefold.11 From 1860 to 1880, the rail network tripled in size, doubled from 1880 to 1900, and doubled again by 1914.12 In Great Britain, France, Italy, the German Empire, and Austria-Hungary, the rail network was completed by 1880.13 This led to a better distribution of manufactured goods and faster passenger transport, as well as the distribution of newspapers and letters and perishable goods. The railway thus provided a hub for industry and commerce, for the transport of passengers, and for the accelerated forwarding of messages.14 But where there was rapid progress, there were also setbacks and disasters. This historical paper examines one of these early major disasters – the collapse of the railway bridge over the Firth of Tay15 in Scotland and its social and professional repercussions. People's everyday lives changed rapidly during this period, and not everyone welcomed these changes. The German poet Heinrich Heine (1797-1856), who had observed the railways in Paris, wrote the following sentence on May 5, 1843: "Railways kill space, and all that remains is time." 16 This academic paper examines the enormous progress and technical limitations of the expansion of the railway network and is divided into five parts. After an introduction and a presentation of the current state of research, the third part presents the Tay Firth Bridge (construction and collapse).17 Part four presents the professional and social debate that began immediately after the accident – the investigation by a state court of inquiry also draws on literary and textual adaptations published by William McGonagall (in Scotland) and Theodor Fontane (in Germany), as well as by unknown artists (as nursery rhymes, songs, or laments).18 An outlook on the ongoing scientific debate about the causes of the collapse and research into 10 Hobsbawm (1975), 55. 11 Wobring (2005). 12 Wobring (2005), with data from Hennig (1913), Woodruff (1966) and Pohl (1989). 13 Osterhammel (2009), 1019. 14 Wobring (2005). 15 The „Firth of Tay“ has been originally namend wrongly in the formally acknowleged Version of this Thesis as „Tay Forth“. However, the Scottish word for fjord is "firth." The southern fjord near Edinburgh, which is also spanned by a railway bridge, is called the "Firth of Forth." This fact may have contributed to the confusion. 16 Heine (1843), cited according to Escudier (2011). 17 Images of the first Tay Bridge, the bridge after the collapse and the reconstruction of the second bridge are in the appendix (Figures 1-9). 18 All evaluated literary original texts are printed in the appendix. 3 legal aspects and management errors is also provided. Part 5 provides the summary and conclusion. 2. State of research and course of the investigation This paper addresses the following questions: What technical limitations existed in the design possibilities of this transport policy expansion through railway lines and, in particular, railway bridges? Were mistakes made? What was learned from them? How did society and recognized experts react? This will examine in more detail what led to the collapse of the Tay Firth Rail Bridge on December 28, 1879, in which the central section of the bridge and an entire train, including the steam locomotive, plunged into the Tay Firth south of Dundee (Scotland), killing 75 people.19 The question of the technical feasibility of a railway bridge over an estuary, the errors involved, and the consequences, was widely discussed publicly and professionally in Great Britain and other European nation states from 1880 onwards – including the German Empire. The accident also resonated culturally, leading to written debates in both Scotland and the German Empire about the feasibility fantasies of self-confident engineers and railway companies.20 The debate pitted progress optimists against progress pessimists, with the progress optimists clearly having the upper hand with regard to railways in Victorian Britain since 1840, and the engineers' big dreams and obsession with feasibility, as well as the economic competition of the railway companies, making a significant contribution.21 Pinsdorf analyzes that at that time, "untamed euphoria" was paired with "Victorian overconfidence and unquestioned techno-hubris."22 The Tay Bridge disaster had numerous immediate repercussions that continue to this day. Numerous scientific studies and reports have subsequently been published, and it is still considered a prime example of excessive faith in technology, ignorance, and sloppiness in the maintenance of a bridge23 over an estuary, and the limits of feasibility ("The museum of management mistakes"24) in the second half of the 19th century – and as one of the most significant man-made disasters of the 19th century25 – the Tay 19 An overview of the events is given by Swinfen (1994), McKean (2006), Prebbel (2021), Nebel (2023) and Seewald (2025). 20 Pinsdorf (1997). 21 Pinsdorf (1997). 22 Pinsdorf (1997), 491. 23 Seewald (2025). 24 Pinsdorf (1997), 491. 25 The Open University (2016). 4 Bridge disaster is still considered the largest structural disaster in the history of Great Britain in the last two hundred years – particularly in terms of the number of victims and the destruction of civilian infrastructure.26 The Edinburgh to Dundee train disaster on December 28, 1879, is well documented27 and widely reported in newspapers throughout Scotland, Great Britain, and other 19th-century European nations, including the United States and Australia. A court of inquiry investigated the accident on behalf of the Board of Trade, and two subsequent reports were published because the president of the court (one of three experts) made differing and very detailed written statements.28 Furthermore, immediately after the accident, a professional debate began about the problems and feasibility of such railway bridges, as well as a public debate about the widespread belief in progress and the problems faced by engineers and railway companies in connecting the periphery in inaccessible areas (e.g., via valley viaducts and tunnels in mountains and bridges spanning parts of the sea). Extensive literature on the collapse of the railway bridge over the Tay (both historical, legal, construction forensic, management-technical, and meteorological publications) was evaluated.29 The following methods are used in this paper: history of the Tay Bridge, railway history, history of progress, forensic structural analysis, history of technology, microhistory, culture of remembrance. 3. The railway bridge over the Tay Firth (Scotland) 3.1 Construction of the railway bridge over the Tay Firth (1871-1877) At the beginning of the expansion of the railway networks in Europe, the construction of railway infrastructure was not a government responsibility. Rather, private sector initiative was required and responsible for the construction and expansion of the network. This led to fierce competition between competing railway companies. In the north of Great Britain, in the 1850s, there was fierce competition for the development of railway lines in Scotland between the North British Railway Company (NBR) – founded in 1844 – and the Caledonian Railway Company (CR) – founded in 1845.30 Other, albeit smaller, competitors of the two major railway companies were the 26 MacLeod/Martin (2018) and Anonymus (2007). 27 Swinfen (1994), McKean (2006), Prebble (2016) and Shiels/Martin (2025). 28 Report of the Court of Inquiry (1880). 29 Swinfen (1994), McKean (2006), Martin (2025a) and Shiels/Martin (2025). 30 Network Rail (2024), Swinfen (1994), McKean (2006) and Prebble (2021). 5 Scottish North Eastern Railway Company (SNER) – founded in 1856 – and the Scottish Central Railway (SCR) – founded in 1844.31 The latter two dominated railway traffic from the Highlands to the south.32 The CR dominated the longer, western routes in the north of Great Britain – the NBR therefore needed rapid successes on the eastern routes to be economically successful and survive.33 The problem in eastern Scotland was geography. The Firth of Tay, south of Dundee, cuts a deep, 37-kilometer (km) long swathe through the British Isles with a narrow inlet, which posed a significant obstacle to the transport of passengers and goods. Since the 1840s, railway passengers wishing to travel from Edinburgh to the north of Scotland had to interrupt their journey over iron rails to cross two fjords – the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay – and then take railway ferries (so-called "floating railways") across the two fjords34 – in the case of the Tay Firth, a distance of more than 3 km in good weather conditions.35 Slow ferries, crossing both the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay, required the unloading of goods from the railway onto the ferry and the use of the ferries as foot passengers.36 Thomas Bouch (1822-1880) designed a railway ferry for the NBR, the Leviathan, which was in service in Granton from September 1849. The ferry involved pulling wagons onto the ferry and transporting them across the Tay Firth.37 The distance between Edinburgh and Dundee is only 46 miles (74 kilometers) as the crow flies, but the journey time in the 1850s was typically three hours and 12 minutes, significantly longer on stormy days.38 The entire route from Edinburgh to Dundee required three trains and two ferries on the NBR, so many passengers took a direct train via Perth, even though the route is 28 miles longer.39 At the origins of the idea of bridge construction, NBR engineer Thomas Bouch proposed spanning both fjords – the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay – with railway bridges in 1854. Initially considered a "wild idea," this idea was not well 31 Prebble (2021), 19. 32 Prebble (2021), 19. 33 Pinsdorf (1997), 493. 34 Swinfen (1994), 14. 35 Shiels (2020a). 36 Swinfen (1994), 15. 37 Swinfen (1994), 16. 38 Pinsdorf (1997), 493. 39 Pinsdorf (1997), 493. 12 makeshift foundry on the banks of the Tay for cost and logistics reasons, which often produced only limited quality. Many individual parts exhibited air holes and dents; these were not repaired, however, but covered up as botched construction with a black substance (so-called Beaumont's Egg – a mixture of resin and metal dust).87 The actual number of these cover-ups with Beaumont's Eggs can only be estimated.88 Subsequent, optical fillings of defects were also discovered, which did not form solid connections.89 The court of inquiry conducted tensile tests on the salvaged components and determined that they possessed only about a third of the estimated tensile force.90 These findings were confirmed by witnesses responsible for maintaining the bridge, the bridge keepers. They described how, even in the first weeks of operation, "loose parts fell from the bridge into the water whenever a train passed over it."91 However, these construction defects were not reported to superior authorities. More fundamental than these construction defects were design flaws in the first Tay Firth Railway Bridge, which consisted of various compromises: Serious errors were made in the calculation of the loads to be considered and the forces that would occur.92 The court of inquiry proved that Bouch had based his design on wind tables from Greenwich that were over 100 years old, and that the actual wind pressure and the additional load caused by the passage of a heavy railway were significantly higher.93 Bouch had calculated a wind load of only 12 pounds per square foot, while in France and America at that time, a wind load of 50-55 square feet was already being used.94 Furthermore, the calculations only considered the areas of the bridge sides, not the areas of the moving locomotives and wagons.95 Furthermore, during the planning phase in the late 1860s, Bouch assumed a technically feasible train speed of 40 km/h, while in actual operation after 1878, speeds of 112 km/h were achieved.96 Higher speeds caused greater vibrations and significantly higher dynamic traffic loads – several witness statements also confirmed that existing maximum speeds were regularly exceeded when 87 Nebel (2023) and Pinsdorf (1997), 500. 88 Koerte (1991), 95 and Pinsdorf (1997), 501. 89 Nebel (2023). 90 Nebel (2023). 91 Nebel (2023). 92 Nebel (2023). 93 Nebel (2023). 94 Nebel (2023). 95 Nebel (2023). 96 Nebel (2023). 13 crossing the bridge.97 Finally, problems in the middle of the riverbed had already occurred during the foundation work for the first railway bridge, which prompted Bouch to stretch the originally planned spacing of the bridge piers and maintain larger spacing in the middle of the river. This combination of diverse factors, compromises, and sloppiness ultimately led to the bridge's collapse. The court of inquiry reached the devastating conclusion that the bridge was "poorly designed, poorly constructed, and poorly maintained."98 Current research has criticized the bias of member William Yolland on the court of inquiry because Thomas Bouch approached him on October 5, 1869, during the construction of the bridge, to discuss questions regarding wind loading on a bridge structure.99 Yolland responded to Bouch's inquiry three days later and encouraged him to proceed with the planned construction.100 Yolland was therefore biased in his role as an assessor on the court of inquiry into the bridge collapse and, from today's legal perspective, should not have been part of the court of inquiry.101 The investigation report set the first modern standards: it delivered results within six months—a remarkably short period of time—and was conducted very systematically.102 For the first time, the debris was photographically documented, which still enables forensic structural analysis today.103 4.1.3 Consequences of the Court of Inquiry Reports The devastating outcome for Sir Thomas Bouch had immediate consequences for the construction of the Tay Bridge and the Forth Bridge, both of which he had been commissioned to build on behalf of the NBR. The NBR and the public withdrew their trust in him. From July 1880, Bouch was primarily responsible for the railway collapse. Following the publication of the final reports of the Court of Inquiry, he was primarily responsible for the bridge collapse due to the serious design flaws in the Tay Firth Railway Bridge and faced professional and personal ruin, publicly denounced as a murderer in the newspapers and on the streets.104 His lawyers publicly defended themselves 97 Nebel (2023). 98 Nebel (2023). 99 Thomas (1970) and Martin (2025b). 100 Thomas (1970) and Martin (2025b). 101 Shiels (2022), A Conflict of Interest at the Tay Bridge Disaster Inquiry, Northern Scotland, Vol. 13, No. 2, 213-216. 102 Lewis/Reynolds (2002). 103 Lewis/Reynolds (2002). 104 Nebel (2023). 14 in the Times of London.105 Bouch also suffered a personal blow, as his son-inlaw was among the fatalities.106 He was prosecuted in civil court, which was not good for his ailing health.107 His health deteriorated rapidly and he died on October 30, 1880 – exactly four months after the publication of the investigation reports.108 4.2 Expert Discourse Forensic structural analysis engineers and construction experts worldwide are following the collapse of the railway bridge with great interest. Why did this, the longest railway bridge over an estuary, collapse? In addition to experts from Great Britain, civil engineers from Germany were particularly involved in the construction of the bridge and in assessing the consequences of the accident. The civil engineer Albert Grothe (1841-1914) participated in the construction of the railway bridge as construction manager109 – he reported on the successful bridge construction in the scientific journal Nature110 – and the director of the Technical University of Hannover, the mathematician and economist Professor Carl Wilhelm Friedrich Launhardt (1832-1918), examined the accident from afar in the German Empire. As early as January 8, 1880, he published in the Hannoversche Courier his view that a two-track railway bridge with a wider, masonry base would have been a more suitable bridge design.111 These are impressive analyses from a distance. Launhardt's perspective was published in the Edinburgh newspaper The Scotsman on January 15, 1880.112 Extensive expert reports were published in Europe in 1880 in the Bauzeitung in Germany113 and in Die Eisenbahn in Switzerland.114 These described the collapse and its consequences, but their analysis fell far short of Launhardt's contribution of January 8, 1880. However, the collapse of the railway bridge over the Firth of Tay was reported on in other expert reports worldwide: in the 105 Dickson (1880), The Times, 12.07.1880. 106 Nebel (2023). 107 Nebel (2023). 108 Nebel (2023). 109 Martin (2025b). 110 Grothe (1878), Nature, August 1, 1878, Vol. 18, 361-368. 111 Launhardt (1880), Hannoverscher Courier, Dienstag, January 6, 1880 morgens, Nr. 10113, 5. 112 The Scotsman (1880), January 15, 1880, 5. 113 Anonymus (1880a-1880j) and Havestadt (1880a-1880d). 114 Anonymus (1880m-1880q). 15 scientific journals Scientific American and Science.115 The scientific community has learned from the bridge collapse to this day –it is nothing less than "The Museum of Management Mistakes"116 – an insight into the research and publications conducted to date is provided below in Section 4.7. 4.3 Literary processing and cultural reverberation (1880) Immediately after the bridge collapse, the disaster was addressed by two literary figures. In Scotland, William McGonagall (1825-1902), and in the German Empire, Theodor Fontane (1819-1898). Furthermore, the disaster was reflected in British culture of remembrance – especially in Scotland. In addition to the two well-known ballads and poems, several nursery rhymes, songs, and literary expressions of grief (so-called Ballads and Laments) were published. All original texts are reprinted in the appendix (A-Text 1 to A-Text 8). Immediately after the accident in early 1880, the Scottish local poet William McGonagall from Dundee published the poem "The Tay Bridge Disaster" (AText 1), which begins with the following verse: „Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silv’ry Tay! Alas! I am very sorry to say That ninety lives have been taken away On the last Sabbath day of 1879, Which will be remember’d for a very long time.“ He obtained his information from contemporary newspaper reports, but made an error in the number of victims – 75 victims were ultimately known, not 90. Immediately after the bridge collapse, NBR management and newspapers reported 300 deaths.117 The German Empire also reflected on the railway accident and the collapse of the railway bridge over the Tay Fjord. The technical contributions were presented in the previous section (Launhardt, 1880, Havestedt, 1880, Bauzeitung, 1880, Die Eisenbahn, 1880). 115 Anonymus (1880j), The Tay Bridge Disaster, Science, August 7, 1880, 70-71 and Anonymus (1880k), The Tay Bridge Disaster, Scientific American, January 17, 1880, Volume 42, Issue 3, 33. 116 Pinsdorf (1997). 117 Edinburgh Courant (1897), Monday, 9 A.M., URL: https://digital.nls.uk/scotlandspages/timeline/1879.html. 16 In 1880, Theodor Fontane wrote his technology-critical ballad "Die Brück' am Tay" (A-Text 2 in the appendix). In it, three witches work together to destroy the man-made bridge; the most famous quote from the ballad is: "Tand, Tand, Is the creation of human hands." It wasn't his first work critical of technology, but the social response was astonishing to him, and he expressed this surprise in a letter to Mathilde von Rohr: „„Letzte Woche hab ich in No. 2 der ‚Gegenwart‘ ein Gedicht publicirt: ‚Die Brück’ am Tay‘, in dem ich den furchtbaren Eisenbahnunfall bei Dundee balladesk behandelt habe. […] Es hat hier eine Art Sensation gemacht, vielleicht mehr als irgend ’was, was ich geschrieben habe. Sonntag über 14 Tage wird es in Kahle in einem Singakademie-Concert vortragen.“118 Further textual adaptations exist, particularly from Scotland, where both children's songs (A-Text 3: "The Tay Bridge is broken and I'm come to mend it – fal the doo a dido") and textual expressions of grief (so-called ballads and laments; A-Text 4: "Broadside Ballad about the Tay Bridge Disaster"; A-Text 5: "In Memory of the Tay Bridge Disaster"; A-Text 6: "Fall of the Tay Bridge"; AText 7: "Lamentable Lines on the Tay Bridge Disaster") as well as a proverb (A-Text 8) have been handed down. These describe the disaster and express grief over the great railway accident. These sources largely date directly from 1880, but some have been handed down without dates or author information.119 The various text types provide an insight into society's preoccupation with coming to terms with the disaster. The nursery rhyme (A-Text 3) shows that even small children were dealing with the disaster and tragedy – playfully, with each other, and within the family. A-Text 4, A-Text 5, and A-Text 7 are expressions of grief that dealt with the disaster in textual form and were sold. These are so-called broadside ballads and laments that were professionally produced and sold to commemorate the disaster. In the case of A-Text 5, the figure of the bridge is also associated with it (Figure 8 in the appendix). A graphic depiction of the bridge collapse has also been handed down – "The Spirit of the Storm" (Figure 6 in the appendix), in which a spirit or god blows the bridge over. 118 Fontane (1971). 119 The Scottish National Library is a veritable repository for Scottish literary sources, URL: https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/ and numerous sources are also listed on the following website, URL: https://songsfromtheageofsteam.uk/- railways/accidents-disasters/tay-bridge-disaster/80-railways/accidents-anddisasters/tay-bridge-disaster. 17 4.4 Faith in progress partially shattered „The fall of the Tay Bridge was a terrible blow to the self-confidence of Scottish engineering“120 – this statement is printed with the newspaper report in the Edinburgh Courant of December 29, 1879, in the Scottish National Library. It is not the subject of the newspaper report, but rather represents a later assessment of the mood the day after the collapse. From December 29, 1879, newspaper reports were full of reports about the bridge collapse – in Dundee, Edinburgh, London (across Great Britain), and far beyond, people were shocked by the collapse of what was then the longest bridge in the world. Engineers, in particular, focused worldwide attention on the bridge collapse. The British and Scottish engineering professions were severely affected by the bridge collapse. The British and Scottish engineering professions were severely affected by the bridge collapse. The builders’ journal The Engineer reported in 1880 directly after the bridge collapse with the following text: "The daily newspapers have told the world all that is known abou [sic] the circumstances of the catastrophe; and we have no intention of again going over the harrowing details, […] It is our province […] to consider how and why the bridge fell."121 This ultra-rational engineering magazine expressed its fears in the face of the technical failure as follows: "Its fall is beyond any question in some way a reproach to the engineering science of Great Britain […] Our only comfort is that nothing of the kind has ever happened before."122 The collapse of the bridge represented a terrible blow to the self-confidence of Scottish engineering. There were certainly also critical voices, not least in the various public expressions of grief (see the previous section and the texts in the appendix) and from affected family members. But the majority of Victorian society didn't question technological progress – immediately after the bridge collapse, plans were made to build a more stable, durable, and safe railway bridge, and this was envisioned by John Stirling, the Director of the NBR.123 120 Edinburgh Courant, Monday, 9 A.M., Dezember 29, 1879, URL: https://digital.nls.uk/scotlandspages/timeline/1879.html. 121 Nathan (2013). 122 Nathan (2013). 123 Swinfen (1994), 86. 18 The focus was not on whether to build a new one, but on how to build one that was more stable.124 4.5 Recontruction of the Tay Firth Bridge A bridge over the Tay Firth was still needed after the collapse of the railway bridge, and the reconstruction of the railway bridge was planned quickly.125 The decision to build a new bridge was made almost immediately after the collapse. The main reasons were its importance for reducing travel times from Dundee to Fife and ensuring a high-quality water supply to Dundee using the railway bridge.126 Just six months after the collapse of the first Tay railway bridge, the North British Railway (Tay Bridge) Bill was introduced into the House of Commons. Part of the construction plan was the reuse of parts of the collapsed bridge.127 However, the first bill was rejected because, from the House of Commons' perspective, questions still needed to be clarified, such as the exact location of the Tay railway bridge and whether the foundations could be reused.128 A new bill was introduced and, with amendments, passed on May 10, 1881, as the North British Railway (New Tay Viaduct) Act 1881.129 William Barlow, President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, who had already been a member of the Court of Inquiry, was commissioned to design the new Tay Firth Railway Bridge.130 The NBR contracted William Arrol and Company, an external construction firm and not the railway company itself, to carry out the construction. Construction of the new railway bridge began on July 6, 1883, and continued until 1887, when it was opened on June 20, 1887.131 The new bridge structure was built directly adjacent to the foundations of the collapsed first railway bridge (Figure 7 in the appendix), was more stable and wider – based on a new foundation – and now included two parallel railway tracks.132 As part of the reconstruction, some of the old bridge structures from the collapsed bridge (low girders) were reused after extensive and careful structural safety testing.133 The cost of the new construction was initially 124 Pinsdorf (1997), 496. 125 Shiels (2020f). 126 Shiels (2020f). 127 Millar (1895). 128 Millar (1895). 129 Millar (1895). 130 Shiels (2020f). 131 Swinfen (1994), 86, 95, Pinsdorf (1997), 502, Shiels (2020f). 132 Shiels (2020f). 133 Millar (1895). 19 estimated at 640,000 GBP and only slightly exceeded this figure.134 The main focus of the redesign of the railway bridge was safety and reliability – lessons were learned from the collapse of the first Tay Firth Bridge.135 A bridge collapse or an accident like the one that occurred with the first bridge should never happen again. The newly built railway bridge has been in accident-free service since 1887. 4.6 Culture of rememberance (Erinnerungskultur) The collapse of the Tay Railway Bridge on December 28, 1879 has left a deep mark on the culture of remembrance in Scotland, Great Britain, Europe, and the modern world on the one hand, and in the history of technology and railway history on the other. Culture of remembrance is "a formal umbrella term for all conceivable forms of conscious remembrance of historical events."136 These can encompass all forms, including "texts of all kinds, images and photos, monuments, and buildings." 137 All forms are used for the culture of remembrance in the case of the collapse of the Tay Railway Bridge. Jan Assmann (1938-2024) distinguishes between communicative memory (oral traditions within a small social group) and collective memory (institutionalized memorial rites of a society) – together they form the foundations of the culture of remembrance. The example of the collapse of the Tay Firth Railway Bridge demonstrates that oral traditions were passed down after the disaster, including through newspaper reports, drawings, photographs, the bodies, the recovered bridge sections, and witness statements before the investigative committee. Textual adaptations were published in Scotland by William McGonagall and in the German Empire by Theodor Fontane (A-Text 1 and A-Text 2). Further textual adaptations were created and passed down in various forms (nursery rhyme, lament, ballad, song, proverb) in Scotland after the disaster (see texts in the appendix, A-Text 3 to A-Text 8, Figure 7). In 1939, the French sociologist and philosopher Maurice Halbwachs (1877-1945) published the concept of Mémoire collectiv (Collective Memory) – he postulated that a group of people constructs cultural memory together. 134 Millar (1895). 135 Shiels (2020f). 136 Cornelißen (2012). 137 Cornelißen (2012). 20 Both Jan Assmann and Piere Nora (born 1931) built on these approaches with his concept of places of memory (Lieux de Mémoire). 138 Places of memory are identity-forming "crystillation points" where "memories are concentrated."139 Places of memory can be geographical locations, but they don't necessarily have to be places – ideas, songs, or concepts can also be places of memory. The Tay Firth and the new Tay Firth Railway Bridge are tangible geographical sites of remembrance, especially since the new bridge construction runs directly alongside the foundations of the collapsed bridge, and every bridge crossing since 1887 has run directly alongside the collapsed bridge. To this day, the residents of Dundee and Fife can still see the remains whenever they cross the new Tay Railway Bridge (Figures 7 and 9 in the appendix). Since December 28, 2013, the victims of the collapse of the railway bridge over the Tay Firth have been commemorated with two stone memorials, each consisting of three granite columns: one on the north side in Dundee (Figure 10 in the appendix) and the other on the south side in Wormit (Figure 11 in the appendix). Both memorials/stone monuments were dedicated with a small, solemn ceremony and a memorial service.140 The 59 names of the known deceased are inscribed on each of the three stone pillars.141 The construction was significantly advanced by the Tay Rail Bridge Disaster Memorial Trust, which thanks the local community and local businesses for the many donations – without these many financial contributions, the construction of a memorial would not have been possible.142 These memorials, too, are geographical, physical sites of remembrance culture. After all, the bridge collapse is still commemorated on every December 28th at the Tay Firth. Since 2013, this has also often taken place at the new memorials, where wreaths are laid (Figures 10 and 11 were taken by Tom Martin on December 28th, 2024, and were kindly provided to me upon request with the source for this work). In addition to these geographical sites of remembrance, there are literary adaptations (see section 4.3), figures, and photographs (see figures 35 and 7 in the appendix). In this respect, it is evident that the collapse of the Tay Firth railway bridge has become deeply etched in the collective memory of the people along the Tay. But the disaster radiates far beyond this into the collective memory, as the bridge collapse is repeatedly commemorated on 138 Nora (1984-1992, 2005). 139 Weber (2011). 140 Martin (2025c). 141 Martin (2025c). 142 Martin (2025c). 21 anniversaries and other occasions. This occurs in popular literature and depictions, in school lessons when the poems of William McGonagall and Theodor Fonate are discussed, and in university classes when, as in the case of the Open University in Milton Keynes, the bridge collapse is used as a teaching example.143 Finally, the memory continues to this day in numerous academic analyses from a wide variety of – often interdisciplinary – perspectives in various subject areas (see the following section). 4.7 Subject of investigation to this day Subject of investigation to this day After 1880, the collapse of the Tay Firth Railway Bridge remained the subject of forensic structural investigations and other research into the accident, including the actual weather and wind conditions, management errors, and legal issues. This situation continues to this day.144 In the context of forensic structural investigations, the causes of the bridge's collapse have been repeatedly investigated using more modern methods and approaches, and the results have been repeatedly discussed and expanded upon. Among the most important publications in this field are the articles by MacLeod and Martin (1995, 2004, 2018)145, as well as publications by Lewis and Reynolds (2002), Lewis (2004), and Gagg and Lewis (2011).146 In 2006, Bird reexamined the storm from a meteorological perspective147 and essentially confirmed Buchan's early meteorological findings from 1880.148 Also examined was the investigation process itself and the legal assessment of the accident149, as well as the management and management errors of the Tay Firth Bridge. Determining a single cause for the collapse of the railway bridge over the Tay Firth remains impossible, even with modern methods 145 years after the accident. There remain various theories and several factors that combined to lead to the collapse. These are briefly presented below. There is even a view that the bridge would have collapsed sooner or later on its own in the storm.150 4.7.1 Wind theory 143 The Open University (2001a, 2001b, 2016). 144 Martin (2025a) and Shiels/Martin (2025). 145 Martin/MacLeod (1995), MacLeod/Martin (2004) and Martin/MacLeod (2018). 146 Lewis/Reynolds (2002), Lewis (2004) and Gagg/Lewis (2011). 147 Burt (2006), Weather, Vol. 59, Nr. 12, 347-350. 148 Buchan (1880), Journal of the Scottish Meteorolgical Society, Vol. 5, 355–360. 149 Shiels (2013, 2015, 2016, 2021, 2022, 2024). 150 Koerte (1991), 84 and Pinsdorf (1997), 499. 28 Anonymus (1880q), Die Brücke über den Tay, Die Eisenbahn, Vol. 13, No. 2, 10.07.1880, 13. Buchan, Alexander (1880) The Tay Bridge storm of 28th December 1879, Journal of the Scottish Meteorolgical Society, Vol. 5, 355-360. Dickson, A. J: and J. (1880), The Tay Bridge Disaster, Letters from the Soicitors of Sir Thomas Bouch, The Times, 10.07.1880, URL: https://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docsummary.php?docID=383. Havestadt, Christian (1880a), Der Einsturz der Tay-Brücke bei Dundee, Bauzeitung, Nr. 3, 10.01.1880, 15-17. Havestadt, Christian (1880b), Die Tay-Brücke bei Dundee und ihr Einsturz am 27. Dezember 1879, Bauzeitung, Nr. 13, 14.02.1880, 66-67. Havestadt, Christian (1880c), Die Tay-Brücke bei Dundee und ihr Einsturz am 27. Dezember 1879, Bauzeitung, Nr. 16, 25.02.1880, 83-84. Havestadt, Christian (1880d), Die Tay-Brücke bei Dundee und ihr Einsturz am 27. Dezember 1879, Bauzeitung, Nr. 21, 13.03.1880, 111-114. Heine, Heinrich (1843), Industrie und Kunst, Lutezia, LVII, Artikel vom 05.05.1843, HSA, Bd. 11, 181-188. Fontane, Theodor (1880), Die Brück’ am Tay. 28. December 1879, Die Gegenwart, Wochenschrift für Literatur, Kunst und öffentliches Leben, hrsg. von Paul Lindau, Band XVII, Nr. 2, 10.01.1880, 20 f. Fontane, Theodor (1971), Briefe III: Briefe an Mathilde von Rohr, Berlin. Grothe, Albert (1878), The Tay Bridge, Nature, 01.08.1878, Vol. 18, 361-368. Launhardt, Carl Wilhelm Friedrich (1880), Die Tay-Brücke und die wahrscheinlichse Ursache ihres Einsturzes, Hannoverscher Courier, Dienstag 06.01.1880 morgens, Nr. 10113, 5. MacKinnon, James (1921), The Social and Industrial History of Scotland, Edinburg. McGonagall, William (1880), The Tay Bridge Disaster, URL: https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/tay-bridge-disaster/. Millar, Alexander Hastie (1895), Fife: Pictoral & Historical: Pictoral and Historical, 2 Bände, Cupar. Report of the Court of Inquiry (1880), Tay Bridge Disaster, Report of the Court of Inquiry and Report of Mr. Rothery upon the Circumstances attending the fall of the Tay Bridge on 28th December 1879, London. 29 References Amtmann, Katharina (2024), Bis zu 30 km/h: Die erste Eisenbahn Deutschlands fuhr in Franken – auf nur sechs Kilometern, Merkur Online, URL: https://www.merkur.de/bayern/nuernberg/sechs-kilometern-die-ersteeisenbahn-deutschlands-fuhr-in-franken-auf-nur-93402385.html Anonymus (2007), Firth of Tay Bridge Disaster 1879: Worst Structural Disaster in British History, Suburban Emergency Management Project (SEMP), URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20091012103811/http://www.semp.- us/publications/biot_printview.php?BiotID=489 Ashworth, William B. 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(2024b), Corporate Governance, Financial Risk, and the Tay Bridge Projekt, Scottish Law Gazette, 46-50. Shiels, Robert S. (2024c), Our Legal Heritage: The lawyer who masterminded the Tay Rail Bridge, Scottish Legal News, 21.11.2024, URL: https://www.scottishlegal.com/articles/our-legal-heritage-the-lawyer-whomasterminded-the-tay-rail-bridge Shiels, Robert S. and Martin, Tom J. (2025), The Tay Bridge disaster of 1879: a general review of the historical and engineering literature, URL: https://taybridgedisaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/a-generalreview-of-the-historical-and-engineering-literature1.pdf. Swinfen, David (1994), The Fall of the Tay Bridge, Edinburgh. Taylor, William Max (2013), Iron, Engineering and Architectural History in Crisis: Following the Case of the River Dee Bridge Disaster, 1847, Architectural Histories, Vol. 1 No. 1, Art. 23. DOI: http://doi.org/10.5334/ah.ao. The Open University (2001a), Video of the Background to the disaster, URL: https://taybridgedisaster.com/background/ 34 The Open University (2001b), Video of Background to the day of the disaster, URL: https://taybridgedisaster.com/background/ The Open University (2016), Tay Bridge disaster, OpenLearn, URL: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/science-maths-technology/engineeringtechnology/tay-bridge-disaster/content-section-6.3/?printable=1 (archiviert) The Open University (2025), The Riddle of the Tay Bridge Disaster, URL: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/science-maths-technology/engineeringtechnology/riddle-the-tay-bridge-disaster Thomas, John (1972), New Light on the Tay Bridge Disaster, Newton Abbot. 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Note regarding the internet resources: all sources and links were checked for completeness and accuracy before submission of the term paper on June 20, 2025. 35 Appendix Pictures Figure 1: The Tay Bridge, Supplement to the “Fife News“, October 27, 1877 Source: https://www.leisureandculturedundee.com/virtual-gallery- %E2%80%9Chigh-girders%E2%80%9D, also in McKean (2006), 120-1 Figure 2: View of the completed Tay Railroad Bridge from the north (1878). Source: Wikimedia Commons, URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tay_Bridge_disaster#/media/File:Original_Tay_Bri dge_before_the_1879_collapse.jpg 36 Figure 3: Image of the collapsed Tay Railway Bridge - the middle "High Girders" - the high bridge section, has completely collapsed. Source: Wikimedia Commons, URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tay_Bridge_disaster#/media/File:Tay_bridge_dow n.JPG Figure 4: Illustration of the collapsed railway bridge over the Tay Firth. Source: Illustrated London News, 03.01.1880, URL: https://www.newportontayhistory.org.uk/transport/tay-bridge-disaster-the-nightof-the-great-storm 37 Figure 5: Illustration of the search work under the collapsed Tay Bridge Source: The Graphic, London, 10.01.1880, BNA, URL: https://blog.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/2013/12/19/the-tay-bridge-disaster28-december-1879-view-a-free-newspaper-page-about-the-tragedy-via-thetimeline-on-the-bna-homepage/ 44 On the last Sabbath day of 1879, Which will be remember’d for a very long time. As soon as the catastrophe came to be known The alarm from mouth to mouth was blown, And the cry rang out all o’er the town, Good Heavens! the Tay Bridge is blown down, And a passenger train from Edinburgh, Which fill’d all the peoples hearts with sorrow, And made them for to turn pale, Because none of the passengers were sav’d to tell the tale How the disaster happen’d on the last Sabbath day of 1879, Which will be remember’d for a very long time. It must have been an awful sight, To witness in the dusky moonlight, While the Storm Fiend did laugh, and angry did bray, Along the Railway Bridge of the Silv’ry Tay, Oh! ill-fated Bridge of the Silv’ry Tay, I must now conclude my lay By telling the world fearlessly without the least dismay, That your central girders would not have given way, At least many sensible men do say, Had they been supported on each side with buttresses, At least many sensible men confesses, For the stronger we our houses do build, The less chance we have of being killed. 45 A-Text 2 Die Brück‘ am Tay von Theodor Fontane (1880)176 "Wann treffen wir drei wieder zusamm′?" "Um die siebente Stund′, am Brückendamm." "Am Mittelpfeiler." "Ich lösche die Flamm′." "Ich mit." "Ich komme vom Norden her." "Und ich von Süden." "Und ich vom Meer." "Hei, das gibt ein Ringelreihn, Und die Brücke muss in den Grund hinein." "Und der Zug, der in die Brücke tritt Um die siebente Stund′?" "Ei der muß mit." "Muß mit." "Tand, Tand, Ist das Gebilde von Menschenhand." Auf der Norderseite, das Brückenhaus - Alle Fenster sehen nach Süden aus, Und die Brücknersleut′, ohne Rast und Ruh Und in Bangen sehen nach Süden zu, Sehen und warten, ob nicht ein Licht Übers Wasser hin "ich komme" spricht, "Ich komme, trotz Nacht und Sturmesflug, Ich, der Edinburger Zug." Und der Brückner jetzt: "Ich seh einen Schein Am anderen Ufer. Das muß er sein. Nun Mutter, weg mit dem bangen Traum, Unser Johnie kommt und will seinen Baum, Und was noch am Baume von Lichtern ist, Zünd′ alles an wie zum heiligen Christ, Der will heuer zweimal mit uns sein, - Und in elf Minuten ist er herein." Und es war der Zug. Am Süderturm Keucht er vorbei jetzt gegen den Sturm, Und Johnie spricht: "Die Brücke noch! Aber was tut es, wir zwingen es doch. Ein fester Kessel, ein doppelter Dampf, Die bleiben Sieger in solchem Kampf, 176 Fontane (1880), Die Brück’ am Tay. 28. December 1879, Die Gegenwart, Wochenschrift für Literatur, Kunst und öffentliches Leben, hrsg. von Paul Lindau, Band XVII, Nr. 2, 10.01.1880, 20 f., URL: https://www.gedichte7.de/die-brueck-amtay.html - english translation, see URL: https://lyricstranslate.com/de/die-brück-amtay-when-we-shall-meet-again-bridge-over-tay.html 46 Und wie′s auch rast und ringt und rennt, Wir kriegen es unter: das Element." "Und unser Stolz ist unsre Brück′; Ich lache, denk ich an früher zurück, An all den Jammer und all die Not Mit dem elend alten Schifferboot; Wie manche liebe Christfestnacht Hab ich im Fährhaus zugebracht, Und sah unsrer Fenster lichten Schein, Und zählte, und konnte nicht drüben sein." Auf der Norderseite, das Brückenhaus - Alle Fenster sehen nach Süden aus, Und die Brücknersleut′ ohne Rast und Ruh Und in Bangen sehen nach Süden zu; Denn wütender wurde der Winde Spiel, Und jetzt, als ob Feuer vom Himmel fiel′, Erglüht es in niederschießender Pracht Überm Wasser unten … Und wieder ist Nacht. "Wann treffen wir drei wieder zusamm′?" "Um Mitternacht, am Bergeskamm." "Auf dem hohen Moor, am Erlenstamm." "Ich komme." "Ich mit." "Ich nenn euch die Zahl." "Und ich die Namen." "Und ich die Qual." "Hei! Wie Splitter brach das Gebälk entzwei." "Tand, Tand, Ist das Gebilde von Menschenhand." Numerous English-language poems, songs and children's songs or rhymes have been handed down: Collection of english/scottisch poems, songs and children’s rhymes, URL: https://songsfromtheageofsteam.uk/railways/accidents-disasters/taybridge-disaster/80-railways/accidents-and-disasters/tay-bridge-disaster A-Text 3 Childrend’s game / song The Tay Bridge "is broken and I'm come to mend it - fal the doo a dido" - Children's game - ROUD#13075 - GREIG-DUNCAN 8 2002 #1622 p177 (1v/m)177 177 Folktrax.org (2025), URL: https://folktraxarchive.org/menus/search%20for%20titles_ta_tcha.htm. 47 A-Text 4 Broadside Ballad about the Tay Bridge Disaster In this gay and festive season, We must deplore the loss of life, Human beings endowed with reason, Bent on pleasure, not on strife, Suddenly life is taken from them, In a moment they are swept away, Death has swiftly came upon them, At the railway bridge on the River Tay. CHORUS. The storm had burst the bridge asunder, The railway train was swept away, The passengers above one hundred, Were drowned in the River Tay The bridge, two miles across the river, Was built for railway trains to go, 'Twas thought to be an example clever, To travel above where the waters flow, The stormy wind caused this destruction, It caught the bridge and blew it down, The train was capsized in the river, And every human soul was drowned. The accident occured like lightning, In a moment the train was dashed below, The grasp of death around them tightening, No mortal can their feelings know, Near one hundred human beings, In the frozen water lay, Life from them too surely fleeting, On that fatal Sabbath day. Men and women, and dear children, Lay in the river's icy bed. We all must say may God be with them, And bless the poor ill-fated dead. They did not dream that death was near them, But that, alas, we never know, The gates of death were beneath, them, In the water ninty feet below. The station was besieged by thousands, Waiting there with bated breath, The disaster all their fears arousing, For their dear friends lying cold in death, There's young and old among the missing, And a sailor just returned from sea. 48 By this calamity so distressing, Hurried into eternity. May heaven bless our fellow creatures, Lying in the river Tay, With bruised and distorted features, Now their lifeless bodies lay, Their holiday that day was over, Their friends and homes they'll see no more, Husband and wife, and maid and lover, Lost their lives on that dark shore. [About broadsides: Broadsides are single sheets of paper, printed on one side, to be read unfolded. They carried public information such as proclamations as well as ballads and news of the day. Cheaply available, they were sold on the streets by pedlars and chapmen. Broadsides offer a valuable insight into many aspects of the society they were published in, and the National Library of Scotland holds over 250,000 of them.] Source: National Library of Scotland, URL: https://digital.nls.uk/broadsides/view/?id=15027 A-Text 5 In Memory of the Tay Bridge Disaster [Boardside Ballad] The Bridge, the Bridge, the wondrous Bridge That spans the Firth of Tay, The greatest work of human skill, The wonder of the day. Its lofty pillars stood erect, And bore its girders high, A noble sight, when underneath Great ships were sailing by. A wonder to the world it stood, The glory of Dundee ; An iron bridge, so firmly built, Across the raging sea. But what's the strength of bolt and bar? And what's the skill of man, Compared with nature's blast that blow, Produced by nature's fan ? 49 Though large and strong the beams may be, That stretch across the spans, Let but the tempest breathe its breath, And iron yields like wands. 'Twas Sabbath eve, the train had left Old Scotland's chiefest town, Where stands the ancient Holyrood, A palace of renown. From stage to stage the train speeds on, And quickly wends its way Through hill and dale and country town, Bound for the Banks of Tay. Its living freight of young and old, It gathered by the way ; And some were fearful, some were bold, And some were glad and gay. Some sad at heart their way direct, The sick to tend and cheer ; While others with their friends expect To spend a glad New-Year. A father with his children sits, The youngest in his arm, The smile of joy upon his lips, He never thinks of harm. A youth, in manhood's prime, is seen : A maid sits by his sideThe object of his love so keenAbout to be his bride. The train speeds on its fatal course And nears the spot of doom The bridge is seen, while passing clouds Unvail the pale-faced moon. Amidst the tempest loud and shrill, The train it did proceed; When, ah ! no human hand or skill, Could stay the fatal deed. The train into the girders came And loud the wind did roar; A flash is seen-the Bridge is brokeThe train is heard no more. 50 "The Bridge is down, "the Bridge is down," in words of terror spread ; The train is gone, its living freight Are numbered with the dead 'Tis sad to see the open gap At morrow's light of day ; But sadder, still, to think of those That perished in the Tay. Ah ! what's our life-a thread-a breathThat's easy snatch'd away ; In midst of life we are in death, Is taught us day by day Dry up your tears, ye friends the And lean upon the Lord ; The widow's stay, the orphan's friend, Are promised in His word. By C. HORNE, Author of the "Aberdeen Ferry Boat Calamity," "Childhood's Days," "To an Aged Mother," "Fishing Boats' Disaster," &c. Sold at 124 Gallowgate, and 26 Craigie Street, Aberdeen. 15th May, 1880 Sourcen: https://songsfromtheageofsteam.uk/Tey%20Bridge%20Disaster/646 und https://digital.nls.uk/broadsides/view/?id=16622&transcript=1 51 A-Text 6 Fall of the Tay Bridge You people of Scotland I pray give attention, For sad is the news that I have to relate The Tay bridge has fallen, a disaster appalling And nearly one hindered met their untimely fate The 28th of December will long be remembered The mail train left Edinburgh for the town of Dundee With nearly one hundred not thinking of danger Now alas, they are gone and no more we'll them see. Many parted from home and relations that evening And some were proceeding their friends for to see And swiftly along on the line they were carried Until they arrived within sight of Dundee The bridge they were nearing, and no danger fearing, While the wind on that evening a hurricane, e did blow The Tay bridge gave way without one moment's warning And the train and its passengers were hurled below The falling of the Tay bridge, to life so appalling O'er Edinburgh and Dundee has cast such a gloom Of the passengers who left by that train in that evening In health and in strength they now lie in the tomb, Their friends and relations they ran to the station The fate of some loved one all eager to know Who can describe, now their sad grief and sorrow When told eighty-three in their graves were laid low. James Gordon, corn merchant, belonging to Newport, With his wife and two daughters how sad to relate Robert Watson, a moulder, and his two little children, By the falling of the Tay bridge met their untimely fate, Arch. Bain and his sister, Mrs Mann and grand-daughter David Neish and James Leslie, whose fate we deplore, D. Johnstone, Jas. Brimnar, Robt. Watson and Baxter Now lie in their graves and we'll see them no more. David Anderson and Scott, with Robert Sym and Milne Joseph Morrison, Ja. Duncan, belonging to Dundee Wm. Morrison, David Mitchell, likewise Jas. Murdoch, They are gone from the earth and no more we'll them see. Donald Murray and Jas. Marshall, likewise D. Johnson, Mrs Cheap and her servant, their fate we deplore, By the falling of Tay bridge on that fatal evening Their lives are lost and we'll see them no more. 52 There is no one on earth knows the fate that's before us, For we know not the moment or the death we're to die By the dreadful disaster at the Tay bridge that evening, There is nearly one hundred in their grave they do lie, They are gone from the world but a short time before us, But we hope to rejoin them on that happy shore, Where no railway disasters there will separate us, But in happiness reign where there is parting no more. [Notes on the Song and Its Historical Context: First line suggests that the air is Flowers of the Forest. See bar130~Foundering of the Steamer Hibernia (Roud V8781) and bar048~Burning of the Montreal (Roud V39328) which also begin with the line "You people of Scotland I pray give attention" and are set to Flowers of the Forest as is Roud V39329 ~ Wreck of the Ship Tayleur; which was not steam powered so is not included in this website but has the same first line.] Source: http://www.leisureandculturedundee.com/localhistory/taybridge/lambcollection https://songsfromtheageofsteam.uk/80-railways/accidents-and-disasters/taybridge-disaster/773-bar660 53 A-Text 7 Lamentable Lines on the Tay Bridge Disaster Unto my sad heart rending tale I claim your kind attention, And to shed tears you cannot fail, At what I'm going to mention ; Bosom friends and kindred dear Are parted now for ever, By a terrible disaster that Took place on the Tay river, CHORUS. Weep, oh weep, and shed a tear. For those that's gone for ever, From sorrowing friends and kindred dear, They were drowned in the Tay river. That sad and fatal Sunday morning, The twenty eight of December, Upon that il fated train We for ever shall remember ; On a few days excursion trip, From their homes they started, Three hundred souls both young and old, All merry and light-hearted. In pleasure they had spent their time, And homewards were returning, They little thought how soon their friends In sorrow wou d be mourning, All were happy blythe and gay, And in happiness surrounded, But that fatal bridge it did give way, And three hundred they were drowned Alas ! the shrieks and cries of those Was painful and distressing, Fo d parents to their bosoms dear, Their little ones were pressing ; And as the train went plunging down, All hopes were lost for ever, And hundreds of poor human beings Were drowned in the Tay river. Now when the train was going down, It really was bewildering, Fond parents tried to save the lives