CHINAMANS BRIDGE

OVER GOULBURN RIVER, NAGAMBIE-HEATHCOTE ROAD NAGAMBIE, STRATHBOGIE SHIRE

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Victorian Heritage Register

CHINAMANS BRIDGE SOHE 2008

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • History

    CHINAMANS BRIDGE - History

    Contextual History:History of Place:
    The Goulburn River was vital to the development of the district, and bridges were eventually built to replace Old Crossing Place punt, as well as Murchison punt, but the one at Day’s Flour Mill was not replaced. The 1880s and 1890s was an era of steam boats and transport took to the river in preference to bullock teams on unmade roads. If bridges were to be built, it was important that they did not obstruct the river so that river boats could take passengers from Seymour to Nagambie and Chateau Tahbilk, thus opening up the area and bringing progress to Nagambie. Steam ships were also used by the local sawmills .
    
    The timber bridge was estimated to have been built c.1865 in Professor Colin O’Connor’s study of Historic bridges. This would make it the oldest existing timber bridge in Victoria and the third oldest in Australia. Further research has shown however, that the bridge was more likely to have been built at a much later date, c1891.
    
    History of Place:
    
    Edwin Carton Booth in his two volume work, ‘Australia’ (Virtue and Co. 1873-6), does not mention the town of Nagambie and says that between Seymour and Echuca the only practicable crossing of the Goulburn River was at Murchison. In 1879-80 a bridge was built at Nagambie, known as Kettle’s bridge. The Goulburn Weir was completed in December 1890. The construction of the weir was to have considerable impact on the bridges upstream of it at Nagambie .
    
    The completion of the weir and the consequent flooding of land near Nagambie had the effect of reducing the useful life of Kettle’s Bridge. Waranga and Goulburn Shires proposed in 1889 to build two bridges across the Goulburn River at Nagambie, one to be downstream of the town and one upstream .
    
    In 1890, the Honourable Alfred Deakin, Minister of Water Supply, who later became Prime Minister, urged in Parlaiment for Kerris Bridge, as with any other bridges obstructing the river, to be altered and equipped with a drawbridge so that river boats could take train passengers from Seymour to Nagambie and Chateau Tahbilk, thus opening up the area and bringing progress to Nagambie. Kerris Bridge was later pulled down altogether .
    
    There was an expressed need to retain a navigable river, therefore new bridges should be drawbridges.
    One of the bridges at Nagambie had already been built. This bridge known as Kirwans on Lobbs Lane, had been started by the contractors Dainton and Hesford on 24 February 1890. The whole work was finished by November 1890. There were 20 tonnes of ironwork. The bridge was unusual in having been built with an angle in its alignment.
    
    Just when Kirwans bridge was being finished, though with a large road cutting still to be done on the Goulburn Shire side, tenders were called for building the second bridge across the Goulburn River at Nagambie, known as Kerris Bridge .
    
    Tenders were presented for this work at the October 1890 meeting of the Goulburn Shire Council, which was the constructing authority. The tender of J.B. Parkinson was accepted. A month later Parkinson had signed the contract and was starting work with two engines and two gangs. By 19 December 1890 the approaches to Kettles Bridge were impassable .
    
    In March 1891 an inspection was carried out on the site of the works at Kerris bridge. On the way Mr Graham examined a plan of a lift span prepared by Mr Godecke, manager of the sawmill company, which he had drawn from memory of a bridge over the Murrumbidgee River, NSW. The minister was highly pleased with Kerris Bridge and there upon authorised the erection of a lift span providing it did not cost more than 1000 pounds .
    
    In March 1891 Goulburn Shire council approved its engineer’s design of a timber lift span for Kerris bridge and the contractor’s price to build it was accepted. (Nagambie Times 27/3/1891). By June 1891 Kerris Bridge was finished. The Goulburn Shire engineer Richard Fennelly stated his satisfaction with the contractor’s work. In September 1891 the manager of the Nagambie Saw Mill claimed that it was impossible to raise the lift span of Kerris bridge with anything less than four men. As the company’s steamer was passing through the bridge six times a week and sometimes there were only two men aboard he asked for extra counterweights to be fitted so that it could be worked by two men .
    
    In November the Goulburn Shire Council received permission from the Water supply department to fence the road through Vicker’s property near Kerris bridge. This road must surely be known as Vicker’s Lane (RCA Map of Victoria/Road No. 5378) which connects the Goulburn Valley Highway with Chinamans bridge. If this is so then Kerris Bridge and Chinaman’s Bride are one and the same bridge .
    
    A map of the Nagambie region in the military map series at a scale of 1 inch to a mile was published with information correct up to January 1922. This shows a wooden bridge across the river, but does not name it. However the road from the bridge to the Goulburn Valley road is named Chinaman’s Road. A Parish plan of Bailieston, County of Rodney, dated 15.12.1941, shows a bridge (unnamed) and the road leading eastwards from it is named Vickers Road. The County Roads Board visited Goulburn Shire in 1914. After this visit a number of roads within the Shire were declared main Roads. They were Sydney Road, Goulburn Valley Rd and “Vickers Road from its junction with Goulburn Valley Road thence westerly to and including the bridge over the Goulburn”(Nagambie Times 19.6.1914) .
    
    The documentary evidence then leads to the conclusion that Vickers Road, Vickers Lane and Chinamans Road are synonymous and that Chinaman’s Bridge, at the time of its construction, (Nov 1890-June 1891), was known as Kerris Bridge .
    
    Chinamans Bridge, was so called because of the many Chinese market-gardeners established in the area before the great 1916 flood put an end to this activity. The Chinese lost faith in this spot when they saw their wooden idols, joss house, and all their vegetables washed away together with furniture, including pianos, in this terrible flood .
    
    Chinamans bridge was first built as a draw-bridge to allow river traffic to pass through. It was then the era of river steam-boats and transport took to the river in preference to bullock teams on unmade roads. When river transport ceased, Chinaman’s drawbridge was no
    Other examples of Timber Bridges currently on the Victorian Heritage Register are as follows;
    
    Railway Bridge, South of Noojee-Powell Town Rd, Noojee, 1919, 18 span, timber trestle
    Railway Bridge, Orbost-Bairnsdale Line, Nowa Nowa, 1916, timber trestle
    Railway Trestle Bridge over Monbulk Creek, Selby, 1899 timber trestle
    Railway Bridge over Curdies River, Timboon, timber trestle
    Railway Bridge over Hanfords Creek, Wandong-Bendigo Railway Line, Pyalong, timber trestle
    Railway Bridge over Mollison’s Creek, Wandong-Bendigo Railway Line, Pyalong, 1889, 26 span, timber trestle
    Brunton’s Bridge over Thomson River, Old road between Cowarr and Walhalla, Narracan
    Railway Bridge over Mollison’s Creek, Wandong-Bendigo Railway Line, Pyalong, 1889, 26 span, timber trestle
    Hopkins River Bridge, Hopkins Point Rd, Warrnambool, 1894-1895, timber
    Hinnomunjie Bridge, Mitta Mitta River, Omeo, 1910, timber trestle
    
    Chinamans Bridge still remains as one of the earliest timber bridges constructed in Victoria and is rare for its timber girder construction. It is a rare example of a bridge which once included a lift span, another example is yet to be found.
    
    used as such, the drawbridge span was replaced, around 1940, with a steel span-the bridge being all timber previously-and the bridge re-decked .

    Permit Exemptions

    CHINAMANS BRIDGE - Permit Exemptions

    General Exemptions:

    General exemptions apply to all places and objects included in the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR). General exemptions have been designed to allow everyday activities, maintenance and changes to your property, which don’t harm its cultural heritage significance, to proceed without the need to obtain approvals under the Heritage Act 2017.

    Places of worship: In some circumstances, you can alter a place of worship to accommodate religious practices without a permit, but you must notify the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria before you start the works or activities at least 20 business days before the works or activities are to commence.

    Subdivision/consolidation: Permit exemptions exist for some subdivisions and consolidations. If the subdivision or consolidation is in accordance with a planning permit granted under Part 4 of the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and the application for the planning permit was referred to the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria as a determining referral authority, a permit is not required.

    Specific exemptions may also apply to your registered place or object. If applicable, these are listed below. Specific exemptions are tailored to the conservation and management needs of an individual registered place or object and set out works and activities that are exempt from the requirements of a permit. Specific exemptions prevail if they conflict with general exemptions.

    Find out more about heritage permit exemptions here.

    Specific Exemptions:

    EXEMPTIONS FROM PERMITS:
    (Classes of works or activities which may be undertaken without a permit under
    Part 4 of the Heritage Act 1995)
    
    General Conditions
    
    1. All exempted alterations are to be planned and carried out in a manner
    which prevents damage to the fabric of the registered place or object.
    2. Should it become apparent during further inspection or the carrying out of
    alterations that original or previously hidden or inaccessible details of the
    place or object are revealed which relate to the significance of the place or
    object, then the exemption covering such alteration shall cease and the
    Executive Director shall be notified as soon as possible.
    3. If there is a conservation policy and plan approved by the Executive
    Director, all works shall be in accordance with it.
    4. Nothing in this declaration prevents the Executive Director from amending
    or rescinding all or any of the permit exemptions.
    5. Nothing in this declaration exempts owners or their agents from the
    responsibility to seek relevant planning or building permits from the
    responsible authority where applicable.
    
    
    * No permit required for routine maintenance of the Chinaman's Bridge
    
    * No permit required to replace like with like on the Chinaman's Bridge

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