The Tharwa Bridge (or rather the original parts there-off which remain after a number of renovations and upgrades in the intervening period) was officially opened with great pomp and ceremony on 27 March 1895 and was the first all weather high-level crossing of the Murrumbidgee River in this area.
The deck level of the bridge is 12 metres above the average water level and, hard though I find to believe, marks the highest recorded flood level prior to the building of the bridge.
This point on the Murrumbidgee River had, for a long time before the bridge was built, been a crossing point on the river. It was used by the Ngunnawal Aboriginal people for centuries before the arrival of Europeans in the area, in the mid 19th century. While generally a very genteel looking crossing point, the river flooded often and quickly after storms or when snow melted upstream making this a very dangerous crossing. Drownings were common as was the loss of stock and horses and carts with their loads.
In addition to being the Australian Capital Territory’s oldest standing bridge it is Australia’s oldest surviving Allan truss bridge. It was designed by Percy Allan, a New South Wales Public Works Department engineer, based on an original American design. While the wooden part of the bridge is original it no longer has any structural role and the original wooden piers which supported the bridge were replaced with concrete piers many years ago while the wooden deck/road was replaced with concrete/tar in the early 2000s.
Exercising care, as the bridge is a narrow single lane one, do walk out to the centre of the bridge for the lovely view both up and down the river (pictures above. I just love that upstream bank of poplars you can see in picture 4. Update: I crossed over the bridge one week after the attached photos where taken and the water level was one – two metres higher than depicted here.
This blog entry is one of a group (loop) of entries based on Tharwa. I suggest you continue with my next entry – Tharwa Explorer Walking Track – or to start this loop at the beginning go to my introductory entry – The Australian Capital Territory’s Oldest Village.
The Rambling Wombat 