The exact name of this bridge seems to be a little vague, modern OS maps call it ‘Marsh Street Bridge’ although i’ve also heard others call it ‘Forty Foot Bridge’ or ‘Fox Heads Bridge’

The housing to the south of the bridge was known as ‘Fox Heads’ or ‘Foxheads’ as it was built for the workers of the Newport Rolling Mills operated by Messrs Fox, Head and Company.

The bridge is shown as existing on the 1894 town plan although the housing in the immediate area is still incomplete.
The plan shows that there was actually a sizable ramp which ran from Frederick Street parallel to Marsh Street so another bridge actually crossed the end of Newport Street before crossing the railway. These two pages of memories by a resident say that the last 25 yards of Marsh St was used by the firm PA Mudd for storage, which would tie in with this series of arches that can still be seem today.

The north end of the bridge was actually a junction, with a right turn putting you onto Forty Foot Road and towards the Newport Rolling Mills, the retaining wall of this junction is still visible.

A left turn was a smaller road which on the 1894 map leads into the Newport Iron Works. A contact at Network Rail informs me they have the structure listed as ‘Marsh Street; and the current metal deck dates from 1912.

Sharp-eyed reader Sean has also spotted that the childhood memories on the Communigate website also mention a “Stinky Pole” which could well be a stench pipe that’s possibly still there next to the bridge.