Trinity Chain Pier

Trinity Chain Pier
The pier
TypeFerry pier
CarriesPassengers
SpansFirth of Forth
LocaleEdinburgh, Scotland
OwnerTrinity Pier Company
Characteristics
Total length700 feet (210 m)
Width4 feet (1.2 m)
History
DesignerSamuel Brown
Opening date14 August 1821
Closure date18 October 1898
Coordinates55°58′49″N 3°12′16″W / 55.980192°N 3.204438°W / 55.980192; -3.204438
Map of the Firth of Forth showing (in red) some of the destinations served from the pier in its heyday

Trinity Chain Pier, originally called Trinity Pier of Suspension, was built in Trinity, Edinburgh, Scotland in 1821. The pier was designed by Samuel Brown, a pioneer of chains and suspension bridges. It was intended to serve ferry traffic on the routes between Edinburgh and the smaller ports around the Firth of Forth, and was built during a time of rapid technological advance. It was well used for its original purpose for less than twenty years before traffic was attracted to newly developed nearby ports, and it was mainly used for most of its life for sea bathing. It was destroyed by a storm in 1898; a building at the shore end survives, much reconstructed, as a pub and restaurant called the Old Chain Pier.