Five Day Creek Bridge, 1893

ABOUT THE BRIDGE:

As early as 1856 the government granted £1500 for the construction of road between Armidale and Kempsey and £800 per annum for its upkeep. It is unclear whether there was a low level bridge or ford in place at this time. That a new bridge was built on this road in the 1890s demonstrates the importance of the road. NSW was in a severe depression at the time. The financial year 1892-1893 was the height of the financial crisis, with expenditure on roads and bridges dramatically reduced.

One of the aims of the late nineteenth century road building program was to maintain regular mail runs. The contemporary mail schedules held by the Macleay River Historical Society indicate that the Creek crossed a regular mail route. In addition, together with a bridge over George’s Creek and two other un-named watercourses, a bridge over Five Day Creek was required to complete the road on the ‘Kempsey side’. Of the three main crossings encountered on the road (the third being at Oakey Creek) these two bridges were of the greatest importance because of their tendency to flood to high levels. Of Five Day Creek it was later said that, before the construction of the Bridge, it

‘…was the most dangerous and troublesome stream which had to be crossed along this road.’(Macleay Argus, 16th August, 1893)

Floods in river and creek beds that might otherwise contain only a little water in normal or drought conditions were one of the main challenges to bridge design presented to New South Wales engineers who worked on these river crossing structures (Jeans, 1983, p.126). The propensity for Five Day Creek to flood in this manner was borne out when floods swept down in 1893 while the bridge was under construction:

‘…(the bridge) withstood the terrific strain, although the water was 5ft. 6 in. over the planking. The piles, driven into rock a fortnight ago, are solid still. The staging plant, however, was swept away. Portions of the heavy pile driver were found at Sherwood and in the scrub at West Kempsey.’ (Macleay Argus, June 1893)

‘…Owing to the approaches of the banks having been washed away at the place mentioned (at the contractors plant), the whole of the traffic must now cross half a mile lower down, near the junction of the creek and the river, and nearly a mile must be travelled from the crossing before the main road is struck again. Between Five Day Creek and Geogla Hill the roads have been washed out…. It is expected that in the course of a few weeks traffic can be resumed as before….’ (Macleay Argus, May 1893)

Indeed, the difficulties posed by Five Day Creek and the major floods of 1893 were responsible for the delay in the construction of the Bridge:

‘…the work being much delayed by floods…The sinking of the piles was the most arduous part of the undertaking. Two piers had to be placed in the bed of the stream. To enable this to be done a dam had to be erected around the places and a pump was kept continually going to keep the water down where the men were working. As may well be imagined even freshes interfered with this...’ (Macleay Argus, January 1894)

The McDonald truss design, used at Five Day Creek, was part of the drive for economy implemented by Robert Hickson, Commissioner for Roads. From 1886 when McDonald designed the truss, until the McDonald truss design was superseded in 1894, sixteen timber truss bridges were built each year (Broomham, 2001:94).

Plans for the bridge over Five Day Creek were drawn up and signed on 6 November, 1891. The tender for the Five Day Creek Bridge was for:

‘a substantial structure…The woodwork is to be iron bark, the main structure being a 75 ft. span, with two 30 ft. and four 25ft. approach spans.’ (Macleay Argus, 20.11. 1891)

Hardwood timber grown in NSW had long been considered among the best in the world for this purpose. This, together with limited capacity to produce iron and steel in quantity, and the obvious problems of transporting imported materials to remote areas no doubt provided impetus for construction of numerous timber bridges from the earliest years of European settlement in New South Wales. (Sydney Gazette, 23 October, 1808).

Construction was completed in 1893 after extensions of time for flooding at the site. The bridge cost £2562. When the Bridge was opened to traffic has not been determined, though it appears to have been a source of local pride and most certainly impressed visitors:

‘It is impossible to see a finer or more substantial bridge of its class in any part of the colony than that which has just been constructed over Five Day Creek. Between 200ft and 300 ft long, and made entirely from iron bark it is, while possessing enormous strength, built on lines which do not give an appearance of undue heaviness, and so, from whatever view point it may be judged, the structure is one upon which all concerned in its construction may be honestly congratulated. The massive piles have been sunk many feet into the solid rock, and the fact that those which were in at the time withstood the full force of the tremendous flood of June shows that the work has been done in no slipshod manner….’ (Macleay Argus, 31 January, 1894).