I’ve always loved the Forth Railway Bridge. An amazing feat of engineering which still stands the test of time while the much younger road bridge has already had to be replaced. Neither road bridge can match the majesty of the rail bridge which took eight years to build, 50,000 tons of steel and 6.5 million rivets. Opened in 1890, it has served Scotland for over 136 years. Who would bet against it standing for another century and more.
Hammering The Rivets
© Alan G Brydon
V1
If you went north from Edinburgh
On the railway line
You had to go around the Firth of Forth
It took a long longtime
To build a bridge, would be some deal
One and a half miles wide
But 50,000 tons of steel
Will get you to the other side
Chorus
Eight long years I’ve been working on the bridge
Working on the bridge, working on the railway
Eight long years I’ve been working on the bridge
Working on the bridge, working on the railway
The foreman told me it won’t seem long
If you hammer in the rivets to a shoogling song
Home, hammering the rivets home, hammering the rivets
Home, hammering the rivets home, hammering the rivets
Home
V2
Hot one ready - that’s the call
Every one struck by hand
A red hot rivet flies through the air
And they catch it in a bucket of sand
He grips it, and pushes it home
Ready for the gun
Six and a half millions rivets
Were hammered in one by one