Tabulam Bridge, Clarence River, 1902

ABOUT THE BRIDGE:

The Tabulam region is a land of the Bundjalung people and is culturally significant, with the Koori place name of Tabulam meaning “the originals”. European settlement of Tabulam resulted in the forced relocation of many of the Bundjalung people to a nearby Aboriginal reserve, which later became a mission (now known as the Jubullum Village, located approximately 3.5 kilometres west of the Tabulam township. The Jubullum Flat Camp Aboriginal Area (managed by NSW National Parks, approximately 0.5 km north of Tabulam village) is also a culturally significant site for the Bundjalung people.

The crossing place at Tabulam over the Clarence River had been serviced by a punt prior to the construction of a permanent road bridge. Not all found this suitable however and it was considered to be useless in times of flood. A report from the Town and Country Journal in 1879 said delays of weeks at a time were often experienced and its general location off the main road made access almost impossible under wet conditions.

The huge floods of the early 1890s saw the river rise to 42 feet in height at Tabulam and led to local agitation for the construction of a high level bridge which would allow the passage of traffic in any weather. It was not however until 1899 that the Government allocated the sum of £13000 for the construction of a bridge. Significantly at this time the Bridge was considered to be of prime importance as it was on the mail route between Tenterfield and Ballina.

A notice inviting tenders for a bridge, designed by E. M. de Burgh, was advertised in the Government Gazette in November 1899. The contract for the Bridge was awarded to F. J. Carson and a separate contract for the ironwork granted to Messrs Pope and Maher. Work proceeded with little delay as the water level in the Clarence River was much reduced by this time due to drought. The construction of the Bridge was completed using day-labour under the direction of the engineer, Mr. D. W. Armstrong and would have provided welcome employment opportunities in the depression era of the 1890s.

The nature of the crossing and approaches to the Clarence River required a number of structures to be built, including the main bridge over the river itself and two smaller bridges on the Tenterfield side. The main bridge was of a considerable length having 5 de Burgh truss spans, each of 104 feet (on concrete piers), 11 beam spans of 35 feet and 2 of 30 feet in length. Plans of the Bridge indicate ten beam spans on the Tabulam side and three on the Tenterfield side of the Bridge. The four main piers supporting the truss spans are concrete.

On completion in early 1903 the total length of the main bridge was 974 feet and the height of the concrete piers was 60 feet above the river bed (RDPW 1903: 58). Concrete piers had proved to be economical and reliable in other locations and the PWD was keen to use these where possible. In a paper on recent road bridges built in New South Wales, Harvey Dare noted that the piers were formed on site, in open coffer-dams of various grades of concrete which was then rendered.

Final details of the complete structure were listed in “Schedule A: New Bridges completed between 1st July, 1902 and 30th June, 1903, where no previous bridges existed”. The combined length of the structures was 1265 feet, comprising 5 truss spans and 21 beam spans, built at a cost of £14085. The listing refers to a bridge over the Clarence River, including bridges 1 and 2, and roads in approach.

No records make any mention of an opening ceremony for the Bridge. Celebrations may have been down played by locals due to the continuing drought and the Boer War (1992: 128). It may also have been due to the project comprising a number of stages (the three bridges and approach roads) which resulted in staggered completion dates. One source records that the Bridge was opened in 1902 and cost the Department of Public Works £15,884, yet the Annual Report for 1903 lists an amount of £14,085 and states that it was completed in 1903.