Excitement in 1956

For one day only, in October 2011, the Saltash Ferry is celebrating 50 years since the opening of the new Saltash Bridge.  For details see this link: http://www.saltashferrylink.com/

Back in July, on a post, I mentioned being rushed to hospital in 1956 for an emergency appendix removal.  The local Doctor (Eckersley) packed me into the front of his car, wrapped in a blanket, then drove my mother and me in his big black car from Liskeard up to Saltash (not such a good road in those days). Then we were first on to the ferry and it left pretty quickly.  When we reached the Plymouth side of the river we were first off.    

Luckily, at five years old, I didn't realise the seriousness of the journey and so it was very excited about the whole experience.  All I can say is thank goodness for the fast, efficient ferry. Otherwise we would have had to drive all the way up to Gunnislake to cross the River Tamar via the single lane 'new bridge', built many centuries earlier, and perhaps I might not have survived to write this blog! (see below for details about the Gunnislake Bridge)

Until the construction of the Tamar road bridge at Saltash in 1962, Gunnislake New Bridge, built in the early 16th century, was the lowest bridging-point on the Tamar and one of the main routes of entry from Devon into Cornwall.