COLDSTREAM BRIDGE

To the east of Coldstream lies Smeaton's seven arched bridge which was erected between 1763 - 1766 at a cost of £6000, the bridge spans the river Tweed replacing the age old invasion ford and connects Scotland to the north with its neighbour England to the south.
The bridge has experienced some repair and change during the twentieth century, the foundations were protected with concrete, the parapet walls rebuilt and the cauld repaired in 1922. In 1960 - 1961 the bridge was strengthened by reinforced concrete relieving arches and widened by cantilevering the footpaths.

In the centre of the bridge two plaques, one either side depicting, one the construction dates and the names of those involved, the other erected on May 7th 1926 by the Coldstream Burns Club to commemorate Robert Burns who crossed the bridge on the 7th May 1787 entering England for the first time, here he was to kneel and prayed for a blessing on his native land in the words :-

" O SCOTIA ! MY DEAR, MY NATIVE SOIL !
FOR WHOM MY WARMEST WISH TO HEAVEN IS SENT !
LONG MAY THY HARDY SONS OF RUSTIC TOIL
BE BLEST WITH HEALTH, AND PEACE, AND SWEET CONTENT."

On the north side of the bridge is the Toll or Marriage House similar to the one at Gretna Green, It is believed that three Lord Chancellors of England were married here, Lord Erskine, Eldon and Broughton.
The ministers that conducted the ceremonies were not ordained church men but flamboyant local characters. There was a Mr McEwen a Taylor by trade who always wore a clean white waistcoat, a shoemaker named Pat Mudie who wore an old tattered suit and Will Dixon, also a shoemaker by trade, and is said to have commenced all his ceremonies with the important phrase " What's yer name mon, and where d'ye come frae ? "

Dixon was to be the last "minister" as all ceremonies were prohibited by an act of parliament in 1856.

Today the bridge plays host to many special crossings form England to Scotland and Scotland to England such as the arrival of the Stone of Destiny in 1996

The stone, transported by army landrover, escorted by the Colstream guards (F company), left Westminster Abbey at dawn on Thursday 14th November 1996, reaching the England - Scotland border on the morning of Friday 15th november, Following a delay of 1 hour due to a bomb scare, the stone crossed the Tweed Bridge into Scotland accompanied by a cry of 'Freedom' and into the town of Coldstream.

The stone was led from the bridge by the Lowland band of the Scottish Division & Pipes and Drums of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, to the tune - 'The return of the stone' written by Pipe Major Gavin Stoddart (director of army bagpipe music at Edinburgh Castle).