1. Hawarden Bridge was built by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway as part of its strategy extend into North Wales. The MS&L promoted the Chester and Connah's Quay Railway to connect with the Wrexham, Mold & Connah's Quay Railway In 1897 the MS&L became the Great Central Railway and acquired the WM&CQR .
The bridge was opened by W E Gladstone on 3 August 1889. It consists of two fixed spans of 120ft (36.6 metres) and one swing span of 260ft (79 metres), all bowstring girder trusses. The large span is asymmetrical and is supported on a 40ft (12.2 metres) diameter cylindrical brick pier filled with concrete. Twin hydraulic cylinders, one for opening and one for closing the bridge by means of their rams pulling a chain attached under the span, are carried on heavy casting built into the pier. The landward end of the span was carried on rollers and a circular track carried on box girders supported on cast iron cylinders (which also carried the pressurised water pipes), and when the bridge was open to the river the swing span lay over a wooden pier which guarded against collision from shipping. Hydraulic power was supplied by an adjacent power station at the north-east end of the bridge, now demolished. The bridge is no longer capable of being swung.
W J Crompton, RCAHMW, 12 November 2009.

2. The control tower, from where the bridge was operated, stood at the northwest end of the bridge. A tall brick-built structure under a steeply pitched pyramidal roof, it was demolished in 1980 when the bridge was fixed.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 07 March 2017.