Redesdale Bridge facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Redesdale Bridge |
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| Coordinates | 37°00′57″S 144°32′28″E / 37.0158°S 144.5412°E |
| Carries | [C326] Heathcote-Kyneton Road |
| Crosses | Campaspe River |
| Locale | Redesdale, Victoria, Australia |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Wrought Iron truss |
| Total length | 60 metres (196 ft 10 in) |
| Width | 14.3 metres (46 ft 11 in) |
| Longest span | 54.7 metres (179 ft 6 in) |
| History | |
| Opened | 1868 |
The Redesdale Bridge is a very old and special bridge in Victoria, Australia. It's one of the oldest iron lattice-truss bridges in the state. A truss bridge uses a strong framework of triangles to hold up the road.
This bridge is made from tough iron and timber. It also has strong stone supports called abutments made from bluestone. You can find the Redesdale Bridge crossing the Campaspe River near the town of Redesdale.
Building the Bridge
The Redesdale Bridge was finished in January 1868. Even though a stone on the bridge says 1867, it was actually ready the next year. In 2015, its name, Redesdale Bridge, became official.
A Sunken Ship's Story
The metal parts for this bridge have an amazing story! They were first meant for another bridge, the Hawthorn Bridge, in 1859. These big iron pieces were being shipped to Australia on a boat called the Herald of the Morning.
But on its journey in 1859, the ship caught fire and sank! It went down in Hobsons Bay, taking the iron parts with it. Because of this, the Hawthorn Bridge had to wait years for new parts to be made and sent.
Salvaging the Iron
About ten years later, the original iron parts were pulled up from the bottom of Hobsons Bay. They were then sold to a company in Melbourne called Langlands & Co..
Two local areas, the McIvor and Metcalfe goldfields shires, bought 200 tons of this iron for £1000. A clever engineer named T. B. Muntz designed the bridge. A builder named Doran won the job to construct it. The total cost to build the bridge was £6274.
Unique Design
The Redesdale Bridge has a special design. It was built with two separate lanes, divided by a stone pillar in the middle. This design was made specifically for crossing the Campaspe River.
The iron parts were originally meant to be under the road. But they were changed to go above the road, with arches connecting them. This made the bridge even stronger. The road itself is made of long timber planks on big timber beams.
Similar Bridges
The large iron parts for the Redesdale Bridge came all the way from England in 1859. However, by 1870, engineers in Australia were able to make such big metal parts themselves. They had developed new ways to build things for the gold mines. An example of a bridge made with Australian-made parts is the Glenmona Bridge.
