Bourke > North Bourke Bridge | Lift Bridge | Plaques | Darling River Gateway Bridge â—¦

Darling-Baaka River (Barkindji: Baaka or Barka) at 1,472 kilometres, is the third-longest river in Australia, from its source in northern New South Wales to its confluence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. Including its longest contiguous tributaries it is 2,844 km long, making it the longest river system in Australia and the outback’s most famous waterway.

View looking north up the Darling-Baaka River from the North Bourke Bridge.
View looking north up the Darling-Baaka River from the North Bourke Bridge

Bridge side rail, as you walk onto the North Bourke Bridge.

Bridge side rail, as you walk onto the North Bourke Bridge
Bridge side rail, as you walk onto the North Bourke Bridge

Bridge Plaque:

Historic Bridges of New South Wales
North Bourke Bridge
Over Darling River

Opened on 4 May 1883 by Mrs Richard Green (wife of previous Mayor), this was the second and is now the oldest vertical lift span bridge in NSW. Designed by the PWD and built by contractors, William McCulloch & Co Ltd, Echuca, its towers were not joined until 1895 when a new winching system was introduced. In 1885-86 over 790,000 sheep and 40,000 cattle crossed it and it soon became “the Gateway to the Never Never”

Erected to celebrate Australia’s Bicentenary in 1988 by the Department of Mains Roads and the National Roads & Motorists’ Association (N.R.M.A.)

North Bourke Bridge Over Darling River, Historic Plaque
North Bourke Bridge Over Darling River, Historic Plaque
Historic Plaque on the "lift-up’ section of the North Bourke Bridge
Historic Plaque on the “lift-up’ section of the North Bourke Bridge

Bridge Plaque:

Historic Engineering Marker
North Bourke Bridge

J H Daniels designed this lift bridge which was opened on 4th May, 1883. E M de Burgh, another Public Works engineer, modified it in 1895 and 1903. Built at the zenith of the river trade, its construction was started by David Baillie and completed by McCulloch & Co. The 1895 modifications led to improved designs for subsequent lift-span bridges. The bridge is the sole survivor of its type in N.S.W. It served as a gateway to the Inland until bypassed in 1997.

The Institution of Engineers Australia and Bourke Shire Council, 2004

Historic Engineering Marker - North Bourke Bridge
Historic Engineering Marker – North Bourke Bridge
Historic Engineering Marker Plaque on the "lift-up’ section of the North Bourke Bridge
Historic Engineering Marker Plaque on the “lift-up’ section of the North Bourke Bridge