Nowra Truss Bridge - 1880 - Bomaderry, NSW, Australia
S 34° 51.747 E 150° 36.082
56H E 280732 N 6139586
At the northern entrance to Nowra is the historic Truss Bridge, with a Dated Plaque of 1880.
Waymark Code: WMXC37
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Date Posted: 12/24/2017
Views: 1
This iron plaque has been riveted to the northern truss of this historic bridge. It reads:
1880
Built by
Edge Moor Iron Co.
Delaware
U.S.A.
From the NSW Office of Heritage & Environment website: Nowra Bridge over the Shoalhaven River
"The Nowra Bridge over the Shoalhaven River is the only American pin-jointed Whipple truss in service in New South Wales. There are eight main spans supported on eight pairs of cast iron cylindrical piers and a steel girder approach span at one end.
"The eight trusses of the Bridge follow the American practice of being tall through trusses with overhead bracing above the traffic and of using large pins at the joints. It has an overall length of 342m: an end truss of 56m, 7 trusses of 38.5m and an approach span of 15m.
"There is a 1.3m wide footway and the bridge is 5.8m wide between kerbs."
Historical Notes:
"This unique Bridge was intended for a double track railway use but schemes for a South Coast Railway to Bega never eventuated. In fact when the government railway was completed in June 1893 it stopped on the north side of the river at Bomaderry, never to cross into Nowra on the existing Bridge, so the Bridge has been used for 2-lane road traffic for over 120 years.
"The bridge had a timber deck for 100 years until in 1981 reinforced concrete was laid over steel Armco decking. The pairs of cast iron piers are original and were supplied locally by the Atlas Foundry, Sydney. At 1013 feet (309m) overall it was the largest bridge project in New South Wales prior to the 1889 Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge."
Visited: 1703, Sunday, 1 October, 2017