Timber Truss Bridges of New South Wales
New South Wales has a rich history of bridge building and a very active preservation system that will ensure that a variety of old bridges are preserved. Of particular note are the timber truss bridges, which this web site focuses on. Timber truss bridges were built from the 1860s to the 1930s. During this time, iron and steel was an expensive import while good quality local hardwood timber was plentiful. This, combined with the limited resources of the NSW government at the time and the need for bridge spans longer than 10 metres resulted in the aesthetically pleasing timber truss bridges. Over 400 were built in the 70 years of construction and the design was improved over this time period with five different designs used.
The first type is the Old Public Works (Old PWD)
truss. Built from 1860-1882.
The second type is the McDonald truss. Built from 1880-1902.
The third type is the Allan truss. Built from 1893-1929.
The fourth type is the de Burgh truss. Built from 1899-1905.
The fifth type is the Dare truss. Built from 1905-1936.
This web site contains photos and information on 55
different timber truss bridges (all but one of the bridges that still
existed in early 2014).
It also contains photos and information of lots of other interesting
bridges of NSW and Victoria.
Click on the photos below to enter each section.
