Lockyer Creek Railway Bridge is a heritage-listed

railway bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...

on the

Brisbane Valley railway line The Brisbane Valley railway line was a railway connection in Queensland, Australia connecting Ipswich, west of Brisbane, to the upper Brisbane River valley. Progressively opened between 1884 and 1913, the railway provided a vital transport lin ...

over

Lockyer Creek The Lockyer Creek is a creek located in South East Queensland, Australia. A tributary of the Brisbane River, the creek is a major drainage system in the Lockyer Valley. Rising on the eastern slopes of the Great Dividing Range, the creek fl ...

at Clarendon,

Somerset Region The Somerset Region is a local government area located in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia, about northwest of Brisbane and centred on the town of Esk. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire of Esk and t ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia. It was designed by Henry Charles Stanley and built from 1885 to 1886 by H A Brigg. It was added to the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. A ...

on 21 October 1992.

History

The second section of the Brisbane Valley Branch line from

Lowood Lowood is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Lowood had a population of 4,159 people. Geography The town is on the Brisbane River, west of the ...

to Esk was let on contract to H. A. Brigg on 2 December 1884 for . The line was opened for traffic between

and Esk on 9 August 1886. Operating the Brisbane Valley Branch was expensive because the light standard of the line limited engines to B15 standard. As there were many heavy grades on the line, more powerful locomotives could produce substantial savings in the number of trains needed. Using Great Depression relief labour to reduce the cost, strengthening the line to C16 and C17 standard was completed between 1931 and 1933. In 1932 a central timber

pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...

was added to strengthen the

lattice Lattice may refer to: Arts and design * Latticework, an ornamental criss-crossed framework, an arrangement of crossing laths or other thin strips of material * Lattice (music), an organized grid model of pitch ratios * Lattice (pastry), an orna ...

girder A girder () is a support beam used in construction. It is the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams. Girders often have an I-beam cross section composed of two load-bearing ''flanges'' separated by a stabilizing ...

span Span may refer to: Science, technology and engineering * Span (unit), the width of a human hand * Span (engineering), a section between two intermediate supports * Wingspan, the distance between the wingtips of a bird or aircraft * Sorbitan ester ...

. In 1968 in preparation for the operation of diesel engine locomotives in both single and multiple operation, the longitudinal members were strengthened by the addition of

channels Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to: Geography * Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water. Australia * Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...

along each side and transoms laid over the top. The timber piers supporting the span were provided with concrete bases. The railway closed for traffic in March 1993. In late 2018 the bridge was opened to users of the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail.

Description

The bridge features a half-through double x 2 lattice girder bridge on a straight alignment and carrying a single track. Its spans are: * timber longitudinals, common timber trestles with 2 unbraced uprights (Pier 1), 3 single braced uprights (Pier 2) and 5 double braced uprights (Pier 3). * timber longitudinals, common timber trestles. * half-through double x2 lattice girders, channel strengthened timber longitudinals and transom top, timber piers at each end on concrete bases, strengthened with double timber pier at centre span. * timber longitudinals, common timber trestles with 5 double braced uprights (Piers 6 and 7) and 4 single braced uprights (Pier 8). * timber longitudinals, common timber trestles with 4 single braced uprights (Pier 8), 3 single braced uprights (Piers 9 and 10) and 2 unbraced uprights (Pier 11). The approaches are timber girders.

Heritage listing

Lockyer Creek Railway Bridge at Clarendon was listed on the

on 21 October 1992 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history. The bridge with a half-through double x 2 lattice girder spans is one of the oldest existing metal truss bridges with Miva (1886) and Wide Bay Creek (1886), and the second extant of its type constructed in Queensland with the longest span of its type in Queensland between 1884 and 1932. The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage. This is one of the few major bridges on the Brisbane Valley Branch. Its design incorporating a lattice girder span supported on timber piers is similar in concept to bridges on the original Ipswich to Toowoomba line, opened in 1867, but on which all such bridges have long been removed. Although a single timber pier has been provided to strengthen the span effectively making two spans to carry heavier loads, it still shows the original mode of construction clearly. The place is important in demonstrating a high degree of creative or technical achievement at a particular period. The bridge with a half-through double x 2 lattice girder spans is one of the oldest existing metal truss bridges with Miva (1886) and Wide Bay Creek (1886), and the second extant of its type constructed in Queensland with the longest span of its type in Queensland between 1884 and 1932. The place has a special association with the life or work of a particular person, group or organisation of importance in Queensland's history. The design was associated with the Chief Engineer, Henry Charles Stanley.

References

Attribution

External links