Severn River railway bridge, Dundee
Dundee rail bridge over Severn River | |
---|---|
standard gauge | |
History | |
Engineering design by | John Whitton |
Construction end | 1886 |
Official name |
|
Type | State heritage (built) |
Designated | 2 April 1999 |
Reference no. | 1033 |
Type | Railway Bridge/Viaduct |
Category | Transport – Rail |
Builders | Main Contractor for the Glen Innes to Tenterfield section |
Location | |
The Severn River railway bridge is a heritage-listed
History
When John Whitton, Engineer-in-Chief for Railways 1856–1890, extended the Main North Railway from Muswellbrook to Glen Innes, 1870–1884 it climbed through the highest parts of the Great Dividing Range into the New England Region. Gradients were steep, curves were sharp, there was heavy earthworks and some major iron lattice bridges. It was expensive railway construction.[1]
When the section from Glen Innes to Tenterfield was planned, economies were made, particularly with bridges. They had to be timber, mostly ballast top timber beam bridges but at three locations larger bridges were required, over the Beardy Waters, Severn River and Bluff River.[1]
Whitton, a successful railway engineer from England, chose one of
The final section to Wallangarra (1888) was mostly easier over plateau country but the crossing of Tenterfield Creek required a large bridge and a timber Queen post truss viaduct was built there also, the fourth between Glen Innes and the Queensland border.[1]
All four viaducts retain their original fabric.[1]
Only two other such timber viaducts were built in this period, the
Description
Located 701.98 kilometres (436.19 mi) from
The
The condition of the bridge was assessed as fair as at 16 March 2006 due to lack of maintenance since rail services were suspended.[1]
Heritage listing
The Severn River railway bridge was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria.[1]
The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales.
The timber Queen post truss viaduct was an economic bridge for the Glen Innes to Wallangarra Railway at a time when the boom years of the 1880s was ending and funding for railway construction was decreasing.[1]
The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.
Despite a degree of inaccessibility, the timber viaducts over the Beardy, Severn and Bluff Rivers are impressive structures within their rural landscapes. At Tenterfield, the adjacent New England Highway provides easy viewing of the fourth such viaduct.[1]
The place has strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons.
The Main North Railway made a significant contribution to the development of the New England Region from the time of its construction 1882–88, and the four timber viaducts were important items of the railway's infrastructure.[1]
The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales.
The timber Queen post deck viaduct was a significant structure in place of the expensive iron lattice bridges preferred by John Whitton. The viaducts were technically sound and durable, having been built from renowned ironbark hardwood.[1]
The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales.
These four viaducts and the two on the Cooma Line are the only ones of their type built. They are a unique class of railway bridge.[1]
See also
References
Bibliography
- Rail Infrastructure Corporation (2003). Rail Infrastructure Corporation s.170 Register.
Attribution
This Wikipedia article was originally based on Dundee rail bridge over Severn River, entry number 01033 in the New South Wales State Heritage Register published by the State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) 2018 under CC-BY 4.0 licence, accessed on 2 June 2018.