| Historical notes: | STATEMENT OF COUNTRY
Rydal Rail Bridge and Viaduct Group are located east of Lithgow within Wiradjuri country and immediately adjacent to Dharug country (AIATSIS, 2016). The Wiradjuri are the people of the three rivers - the Wambuul (Macquarie), the Kalari (Lachlan) and the Murumbidjeri (Murrumbidgee). Wiradjuri Country covers a significant part of regional NSW, being the largest Nation geographically in NSW and connected through a shared language and beliefs.
There were two Aboriginal language groups in the Lithgow region, the Wiradjuri who were predominantly to the north and west and the Gundungurra (or Gandangara) who were predominantly to the south and east. The areas of Rydal and Tarana contained abundant sources of water through its river and creeks and its high peaks places for vantage points and ceremonies. Artefacts and early journals detailing the use of existing Aboriginal pathways both illustrate the Wiradjuri's movement throughout the area and connection to country (Unearthed, 2023). Rydal was part of a broader landscape in which the conflict known as the Bathurst Wars occurred in post-contact times, and the tradition of Wiradjuri resistance forms a significant part of enduring memory and stories in the region (Gapps, 2021).
EARLY RYDAL AND REGION
Some of the earliest contact between the Wiradjuri and colonists in the Lithgow area came in May 1813 when Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth crossed into Wiradjuri land at Hartley. From 1814, land grants were issued in the region, dispossessing the Wiradjuri inhabitants and leading to conflict. Governor Brisbane declared martial law on 14 August 1824 in the broader Bathurst region, encompassing the area between Rydal and Sodwalls, and a military campaign was launched against the Wiradjuri with at least 100 deaths (National Museum of Australia, 2022; Lithgow Thematic Study, 2000).
The village of Solitary Creek was laid out in 1843 but the settlement became known as Rydal from the 1860s (Jack, 2000, 78). Rydal was on Surveyor-General Thomas Mitchell's original 1832 line of road to Bathurst.
NSW RAILWAYS EXPANSION
The NSW railway was opened in 1855 with the first section of railway commencing between Sydney and Parramatta. This line was the start of what became known as the Great Western Railway which was extended incrementally westward, reaching Penrith in 1863, Rydal in 1870-2 and Bathurst in 1876 (Rowland, 1954, 262; Chamberlain,1992). The extension of the Great Western Railway allowed for the creation of new settlements and easier transportation of materials to expand pastoralism and subdivide land. For Aboriginal people, the extension of the railway also intensified the impacts of colonial settlement including frontier violence, disease and forced removal from their traditional lands.
The railway expansion was led by John Whitton, the first appointed Engineer in Chief of NSW Government Railways (1856-1890). Whitton was the chief architect of the development of the colony's railway network and his vision and technical leadership laid the foundations for a coherent, robust rail system that had a lasting influence on NSW's economic and regional development (Prescott, 1986, 3). Under Whitton's supervision, the rail system expanded from 37kms in 1856 to 3,495kms in 1899 (Railway Guide of New South Wales, 1879; Lee, 1988, 175). As the railway was extended west over the Blue Mountains and into the Lithgow Valley towards the first major western terminus at Bathurst, Whitton faced financial and political pressure to use inexpensive locally-sourced materials rather than his preferred and more costly imported wrought iron (McKillop, 2009, 22). Whitton utilised local sandstone in the Blue Mountains and Lithgow valley to traverse the formidable natural barriers.There were numerous environmental challenges facing Whitton as the railway was extended. The Blue Mountains was a formidable natural barrier for the next stage of construction and required the innovative engineering solution of the Zig Zag Railway (1867-69) to enable the rail crossing and reach the western areas of the state. The sandstone viaducts of the Zig Zag Railway (1867-69) became emblematic of Whitton's rail achievement.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE RYDAL RAIL BRIDGE AND VIADUCT GROUP
In 1868, the contract for the Rydal to Tarana section of the Great Western Railway was awarded to Dan Williams and George Blunt, with completion initially set for December 1870. However, the complexity of the project, which involved 16 railway bridge crossings of Solitary Creek in 7.2kms, meant construction continued until 31 January 1872. Tthere was also a 17th crossing of Solitary Creek further west down the line near Tarana (Sydney Morning Herald, 1892, 5). The numerous crossings prompted an ambitious bridge-building program commencing in 1869 with 16 brick kilns established in the Rydal area (Sydney Morning Herald, 8 October 1869, 6; Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser, 8 April 1876, 466, Chamberlain, Diary of a Challenge,1992, 41).
While Whitton had used stone to construct railway viaducts along the Main Western Line up to this point, the use of bricks at Rydal marked a major change in the choice of primary construction materials for railway bridges at the time. It predated the establishment of the NSW State brickworks in 1911 and these were the first railway brick arch bridges and viaducts on both this line and in the NSW railway network.
While bricks had not been commonly used as the principal construction material for railway bridges (they were used for abutments and piers) at this point, they met the requirement of being less expensive than imported wrought iron and could be produced at close proximity to construction activity. The original bridges and viaduct at Solitary Creek can be divided into three types: 30 feet (9.14m) span brick arch bridges of single, double and four arches; 50 feet (15.24m) span brick arches bridges of single and double arches; and plate web iron girder bridges and brick abutments of 60 feet (18.28) span and 66 feet (20.13m) span.
Sandstone coping and strings were used as decorative elements and sourced from nearby Mount Lambie with bed stones also sourced locally (Lambie (Report of the Royal Commission, 1886). Construction was completed in 1872 with the opening of the line to Tarana on 1 April 1872 (Rowland, 1954, 262; Lithgow Thematic Study, 2000).
MODIFICATION, DEVIATION AND DUPLICATION
In 1885 the plate web girder bridges were inspected as part of the Royal Commission into Railway Bridges, investigating a suspected 'weakness of Solitary Creek bridges' and aging of the plate web girders (Report of the Royal Commission, 1886, 43.). Cracking in the piers and stone coping had already occurred as a result of the movement of the girders and these had been replaced by brickwork prior to 1886 (Report of the Royal Commission, 1886, 2154-2161). However, the Commission concluded that the only safety issue was the bedding arrangement of the main girders on the abutments.
The Sodwalls (Antonio Creek) deviation, opened in January 1906 and was designed to reduce gradients by introducing a longer, three kilometre looping alignment (Chamberlain, 2010, 237). This deviation bypassed four of the original crossings of Solitary Creek (bridges 3-6) and removed the need for bank engines (used to assist trains climb steep gradients) on the Rydal Bank (Kershaw, 1959, 70).
By the early 20th century, much of the single-track railway network in NSW had reached or approached capacity, particularly along the Main Western Line. A major statewide program of deviations and duplications was undertaken to ease steep gradients and sharp curves while expanding line capacity. This program, largely implemented between 1910 and 1930, relied heavily on brick as the principal construction material due to the high cost of imported steel and a long-standing policy favouring local resources (Road Transport Authority, 2006, 60). The establishment of the State Brickworks at Homebush in 1911 significantly increased brick supply, resulting in the widespread use of brick arch culverts and bridges (Fraser, 49). Consequently, the period became defined by large brick arch structures, particularly for double-track duplications replacing earlier timber or iron bridges, with the Rydal to Sodwalls deviation and duplication marking the beginning of this era of bridge construction.
The duplication of the line between Rydal and Tarana progressed slowly between 1910 and 1916 under Railway Commissioner Tom Richard Johnson due to the number of bridges and culverts that needed widening (Sydney Morning Herald, 12 July 1915, 6; Kershaw, 1959, 69). All operational bridges at Solitary Creek were modified into single or double brick arches with spans ranging from 30 feet (9.14m) to 45 feet (13.71m), with most being 43 feet (Chamberlain, 2010, 239; Kershaw, 1959, 69). Bridge 1-2 were modified in 1910 while bridge 7-16 were rebuilt or modified between 1914-1915 (Evening News, 4 November 1915, 5) . For bridges 12 and 16, the new bridge was built around the old bridge and portions of it still exist behind the new brickwork. This method prevented the service from being disrupted (Kershaw, No. 259, 1959, 75).Bridges had a new double-line brick arch built underneath them with the outer curve of the new arch sufficiently low enough to clear the underside of the central strengthening girder of the iron span. For bridges 13 and 15, the iron girders remained in place so that they could be used while the arches were being constructed so that it did not cause delays to traffic.
The plate web iron girders bridges were rebuilt as double or single brick arches and the main girders were reused to bridge the George's River at Liverpool (Anzac Rifle Range branch) and at an overbridge near Mount Pleasant (Kershaw, 1959, 75). Only two entirely new bridges (bridges 7 and 8) were constructed (Kershaw, No. 259, 1959, 75; Lithgow Heritage Study, 2000) however these bridges either utilised part of or replicated the original design of the existing 1870-1872 plate web iron girder bridge abutments, including the same decorative features and stone strings and coping (Report of the Royal Commission, 1886, 866).
Only the four non-operational bridges (3-6) bypassed by the 1906 deviation remained in their original condition. Of the original 16 crossings of Solitary Creek in this section of the line, 12 were modified and continue to be in use today as operational bridges on the Main Western Line. |