TThe first mention of a stone bridge across the River Irvine was in August 1533 although the existence of Bridgegate, at least by 1506, implies the existence of an earlier timber structure. In 1748, the bailies of the burgh ordered a new bridge to be built ‘in the place where the old one stands of the same number of arches and pillars’.
That work was finished in 1753 and received alterations in 1827 and 1889.
Irvine Bridge, more correctly called the Water Bridge, consisted of four segmented arches in rusticated masonry, with splayed cutwaters, bears a plaque stating, ‘Old Bridge 1533, rebuilt 1748, widened in stone 1827 and 1889’ and demolished 1974 to make way for shopping mall.
The recorded location of this structure is now occupied by the Rivergate Shopping Centre.
